Jaiswal, who is here on a review visit of Western Coalfields Limited (WCL), admitted that during the last 12 months Coal India Limited (CIL) has got faster environmental and forest clearances as compared to the year before. However, he insisted that it does not have any link with Ramesh's tenure in the MOEF.
"I do not link the change with any specific individual, but compared to the year earlier, CIL has indeed got several projects cleared from MOEF. There was a little problem related to pollution issues too. However, this can be only attributed to the government's policy in general and not a particular minister," said Jaiswal while addressing the media at the WCL office.
At the same time, Jaiswal appeared to be rather defensive towards private players who have been allotted coal blocks, against which the CAG has raised objections. The CAG said the blocks should have been auctioned and not directly allotted. The minister also pointed out cases in Vidarbha where the original allottees have pocketed hefty profits on selling to a third party the entire stake in the firm which was allotted the block.
Jaiswal, however, felt that nothing much can be done "if the deals have taken place within the framework of the law'. "At the same time, any allottee found violating the law will not be spared. A CBI inquiry is already under way into this," he said. Read the full report here.
Source: Times News Network, Nagpur.
