Supreme Court Cancels All But Four Coal Blocks Allocated Since 1993

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday cancelled 214 coal block allocations, giving the owners six months time to wind up their work.

A bench, headed by Chief Justice RM Lodha, saved only four blocks — one belonging to NTPC and SAIL each and two allocated to Sasan ultra mega power projects — from being cancelled.

The bench, also comprising justices Madan B Lokur and Kurian Joseph, granted six months breathing time to mining companies to wind up their operations in the coal blocks.

The saved four coal mines' allottes will pay government an additional levy of Rs 295 per tonne of coal extraction.

The top court said it has given six months breathing time to functioning plants to arrange for coal from other sources.

SC said government’s stand that it was prepared for cancellation of allocation as logical consequence of the court’s judgment declaring all allocations illegal and arbitrary helped it in arriving at a decision quickly on fate of coal blocks.

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The bench also directed the companies, which were allocated coal blocks but had not operationalized them, to pay a compensation to the government for the loss of exchequer. It accepted the findings of the CAG which came to the conclusion that the loss of Rs 295 per tonne was caused due to the non-operation of the mines.

The apex court had on August 25 held that all coal blocks allocation since 1993 by various regimes at the Centre have been made illegally and arbitrarily.

During an earlier hearing in the case, the UPA govt had opposed cancellation of coal blocks allocation saying that around Rs 2 lakh crore had been invested by various companies after blocks were alloted to them.

(With inputs from PTI)