Warangal: In a major development, the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) has identified coal reserves totalling 40.43 million tons near Palampet village in Venkatapur mandal, Mulug district. The proposed 19-year excavation project is located just 6 km from the village.
The company has prepared a detailed project report, outlining plans to acquire 314 hectares of forest land and 1,480 hectares of agricultural and government-assigned lands for the operation. Initially, SCCL aimed to commence coal excavation in December 2021, completing surveys, setting boundaries, and compensating farmers under a Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) package.
However, the project faced stiff opposition after the historic Ramappa Temple in Palampet village received Unesco World Heritage status on July 25, 2021. The prospect of increased foreign tourism fuelled public resistance, leading SCCL to halt survey activities, cancel meetings with farmers, and suspend compensation payments.
To address opposition and evaluate the potential impact of mining activities, SCCL conducted extensive re-surveys involving reputed institutions, including IIT Surat and IIT Madras. Four scientific studies were carried out over several months, focusing on the environmental and structural impact of mining operations.
The studies, which used monitoring stations set up at 1-km intervals, revealed that blasting operations would not have adverse effects. No significant vibrations or intensity were detected within 5 km of the proposed mining site. Additionally, air pollution studies conducted by the National Environment Engineering team from Nagpur and National Geographic India (NGI) confirmed negligible environmental impact.
Research findings indicated that the Ramappa Temple can withstand vibrations up to 3.3 Hz, far above the measured intensity of 0.01 Hz from proposed blasting operations even at 5 km away. SCCL officials emphasised that similar operations at the KTK Open Cast-3 Mine in Bhupalpally — located near the Ghanapu Samudram Lake and historic Kota Gullu Temple — have been conducted without complaints or adverse effects.
Armed with these findings, SCCL officials reiterated that the proposed open cast mining activities would not harm the temple, nearby water bodies, or the surrounding environment. The research-backed conclusions have bolstered the company’s case for moving forward with the project, which promises significant coal output while safeguarding the region’s cultural and ecological heritage.
