What happened
A proposed coal project in Odisha’s Angul district may require large-scale diversion of forest land and tree felling. The project could involve felling about 3,31,818 trees and diversion of 754.039 hectares of forest land for non-forestry use.
The environment ministry’s advisory committee considered the project proposal and recommended stage-1 in-principle approval under the forest-conservation framework, subject to specific conditions.
Background and earlier position
Coal mining proposals in India routinely require forest diversion approval when project land overlaps with notified forest land. The regulatory question is not only whether mining can proceed, but also what safeguards, compensatory measures, and compliance conditions are attached before final approval.
What changed now
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