A meeting was held here today between Narendra Singh Tomar, Minister of Mines, Steel, and Labour & Employment, Prakash Javadekar, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Environment, Forests and Climate Change and Piyush Goyal, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Power and Coal. Various matters of mutual interest requiring the coordination of activities and decisions amongst these Ministries were discussed and decisions taken about the way forward.
Shri Piyush Goyal assured the meeting that his Ministry would be reviewing all the Notifications issued in the past to ascertain whether any have gone beyond the law. Any the Notifications so found to have been issued in violation of the law will be repealed. MOS (IC), Ministry of Coal, assured the meeting that a separate auction of coal blocks for the steel industry will be done expeditiously. Action will also soon be taken to increase the capacity of washeries in the Jharia Coal Fields so as to improve the supply of coking coal to the steel industry.
Prakash Javadekar informed in meeting that the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) will be reconstituted soon and matters pending for clearance of the NBWL will be thereafter be disposed off expeditiously. The meeting also discussed the situation arising out of the decisions of the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal pertaining to Environmental Clearance (EC) for mineral leases of less than five hectares area. It was decided that the Ministry of Environment & Forests will scrutinize the rules promulgated by State Governments concerning this matter to verify their adequacy as far as environmental protection is concerned and the applicability of the E.C. notification will be removed in all cases where the State Governments have been found to have issued rules that provide adequately for environment protection. The Ministers have also agreed to meet periodically in the future also to enable coordinated and decisive action.