“Competitive bidding is getting delayed due to the No-Go issue. While around 50 blocks have already been identified for auction, we do not yet know how many of them are falling in the No-Go areas or how many are to be freed and in how much time. After all, no block can be put up for bidding until the policy on No-Go becomes clear," said a senior official close to the development.
The proposal of auctioning coal blocks through competitive bidding was mooted for the first time over two years ago. Parliament approved amending the MMDR Act in the monsoon session in August last year. “At least three meetings of the inter-ministerial committee, headed by the coal secretary, have already taken place since then to frame the basic guidelines on bidding. But no decision has been taken so far," the official said. Read the full report here.
Source: Sudheer Pal Singh, Business Standard, New Delhi.
