A coal mining project that will carve out 80.77 hectares of forest land within a crucial tiger corridor in Maharashtra’s Chandrapur district has received clearance from India’s apex wildlife body.
The Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), at its 84th meeting on June 26, 2025, approved the proposal with several conditions, including the implementation of a wildlife management plan.
The project, proposed by the Durgapur Opencast Mine in favour of Western Coalfields Ltd, lies within the corridor connecting Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, Kanhargaon Wildlife Sanctuary and Tipeshwar Wildlife Sanctuary — an area used by tigers for dispersal and movement between habitats.
The proposal was first discussed during the 82nd meeting of the NBWL on March 12, 2025. Following concerns, a comprehensive review meeting was held on May 7 under the chairmanship of the secretary of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), to assess the ecological implications of the project.
According to the minutes of the meetings, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) was directed to inform the state government about the identification of tiger corridors as per the provisions of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972. A site inspection was also ordered before the final decision.
According to the meeting minutes, the member secretary informed the committee that the NTCA had identified “least-cost” tiger corridors. However, the Maharashtra government was also considering corridors identified through telemetry data in its Tiger Conservation Plan, as per the provisions of the Wild Life (Protection) Act. The Director General of Forests and Special Secretary pointed out that the issue is confined to Maharashtra alone.
The member secretary of the NTCA informed that the Government of Maharashtra, in its Tiger Conservation Plan, has identified corridors tracked through telemetry as tiger corridors.
Member of NBWL, HS Singh suggested that the state’s chief wildlife warden is the final authority in wildlife matters in a state and the proposal may be re-examined. Another member, Raman Sukumar, said ground-based field assessments were essential to understand which routes tigers actually use.
“The digital analytical tools may suggest a different path, whereas the ground verification through signs available in the field and talking to local people may suggest a different path. There has to be a balance between the two ways,” he observed.
Despite these concerns, the MoEFCC secretary reportedly stated that since the area was “already broken”, the mining project could be allowed to proceed. Further, the NTCA may be directed to clarify that only the least cost pathways identified by them should be treated as tiger corridors, the minutes said.
After discussions, the committee approved the proposal with several conditions. These include the implementation of a dedicated Wildlife Management Plan to mitigate ecological impacts. The Rs 18.07 crore plan has been already prepared, based on a study by the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun.
Additional measures include fencing forest edges near mining zones to restrict wild animal movement and the removal of invasive species such as prosopis from the Durgapur project area within five years. A detailed plan for this is to be prepared in consultation with forest department officials and approved by the Chief Conservator of Forests, Chandrapur.