Coal India's production growth is likely to nosedive to less than 1% in the current financial year compared to the projected growth of about 7%, as a number of its projects have been hit by environmental concerns.

A top Coal India official has said that state owned CIL has set a production target of about 460 million tonne for this fiscal.

The official told PTI that "Due to NO GO classification by the environment ministry, several CIL projects are lying stranded. The production growth, as compared to the last fiscal is likely to be almost nil this fiscal.”

In the year 2010-11, CIL's coal output, which accounts for over 80% of the domestic production, is expected to be almost the same as 2009-10 fiscal years' 431.26 million tonne.

CIL's 2009-10 coal output was 7% more than the previous fiscal.

In 2008-09 CIL's production stood at 403 million tonne.

Talking about the decline in production, Mr PS Bhattacharyya CIL's former chairman said that "Coal production has taken a dip due to non clearance of projects and no go classification, which has affected many a projects of the company."

Indian ministry of forest and environment has put 203 coal blocks with a potential output of 660 million tonne per annum in nine coalfields under the NO GO mining zone. Besides, as many as 154 projects of CIL are stalled due to delay in environmental and forest clearances at the centre and state level.

(Sourced from PTI)