Lok Sabha Question No. 235 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-07-24
Subject: Mission Life
Ministry: COAL
Asked by: Shri K Radhakrishnan, Shri Sukhdeo Bhagat

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COAL

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 235

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 24.07.2024

## MISSION LIFE

235.    Shri K. Radhakrishnan Shri Sukhdeo Bhagat

Will the Minister of Coal be pleased to state:

- (a) the measures taken by the Government under Mission Life to promote sustainable and environmental-friendly coal mining practices;
- (b) the details of the budgetary outlay to fund Research and Development (R&D) in the coal sector since the year 2019;
- (c) the number of coal mines abandoned, closed or discontinued by Coal India Limited (CIL) during the last five years; and
- (d) the technologies being adopted by CIL in its underground and opencast mines to enhance their sustainability and efficiency?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF COAL AND MINES (SHRI G. KISHAN REDDY)

- (a): Coal companies under the guidance of the Ministry of Coal have implemented 10 Actions items under various categories of Mission LiFE action to promote sustainable and environment-friendly coal mining practices in the Coal Sector as indicated in the Annexure. The budgetary outlay to fund Research and Development (R&D) in the coal sector
- (b): since the year 2019 is given table below:

| Year    |   Budgetary Outlay (in ₹ Crores) |   Actual Released (in ₹ Crores) |
|---------|----------------------------------|---------------------------------|
| 2019-20 |                            22    |                           18.78 |
| 2020-21 |                            12    |                            9.97 |
| 2021-22 |                            11.5  |                            8.35 |
| 2022-23 |                             8.35 |                            6.94 |
| 2023-24 |                            18    |                           18    |

(c): During the last five years, 24 coal mines have been abandoned, 20 coal mines have been discontinued and no coal mine has been closed in Coal India Limited (CIL).

(d): The  technologies  adopted  by  CIL  in  its  underground  and  opencast  mines  to enhance their sustainability and efficiency are as under:

- Surface Miner to eliminate the drilling, blasting, and crushing operations.
- Xcentric rippers for blast-less overburden removal.
- Continuous miner and High wall mining for blast-free clean coal technology in underground mines
- 'First Mile Connectivity' projects to minimize road transportation.
- Water sprinklers and Fog canons to mitigate air pollution.
- Drills fitted with wet drilling and dust extractors to control the generation of dust.
- Dedicated coal corridors for coal transportation.
- Effluent treatment plants for the treatment of workshop effluent & Coal Handling Plant.

Annexure

<!-- image -->

|   S. No. | Category of Mission Life Action   | Action Items                                                                                                                               |
|----------|-----------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
|        1 | Energy Saved                      | Use of LED bulbs/ tube-lights                                                                                                              |
|        1 | Energy Saved                      | Prefer CNG/ EV vehicle over petrol/ diesel vehicles                                                                                        |
|        2 | Water Saved                       | Participate in recharge of rural water bodies including development of Mining voids for water conservation.                                |
|        2 | Water Saved                       | Create rainwater harvesting infrastructure in home/ schools/ offices                                                                       |
|        3 | Single Use Plastic Reduced        | Use cloth bag for shopping instead of plastic bags Participate in and mobilize participation for clean-up drives of coal mining townships/ |
|        4 | Healthy Lifestyles Adopted        | Start biodiversity conservation at community level by developing of Eco-Parks and mining tourism sites..                                   |
|        4 | Healthy Lifestyles Adopted        | Plant trees to reduce the impact of pollution                                                                                              |
|        5 | E-Waste Reduced                   | Discard gadgets in nearest e-recycling units                                                                                               |

*****