Greenpeace on Sunday demanded that the Indian government re-look at its massive expansion of coal mining in forest areas. It also demanded a moratorium on new coal mines. The demands came with the 11th Conference of Parties (CoP) to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, beginning on Monday. The Centre’s present policy of stepping up coal mining is destroying the environment, including the habitat for the endangered Indian tiger. It is also forcing tens of thousands of people to leave their homes.
A Greenpeace study sho-ws that 13 coalfields in the central Indian landscape alone will destroy more than 1.1 million hectares of pristine woodland. Consequently, over 14,000 tribal people in one region alone will lose their homes and livelihoods. Many indigenous communities will be forcibly removed and placed into so called ‘rehabilitation centres’ with no way to earn a living. Samit Aich, executive director, Greenpeace, said, “India’s mad dash to mine coal is destroying the precious biological assets. Ins-tead of showing leadership as the host of this prestigious conference, the government is leading the way on the destruction of tens of thousands of hectares of forest.”