Opencast mining turns into a battlefield in state

 Villagers of Erraguntapalle destroying foundation stone of opencast mine 

New opencast mines are running into stiff opposition. 

Even as Singareni is planning to establish more opencast mines in the coming days to increase its coal production, resistance to this style of mining is rising.

The Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) management has announced that they will open 25 new mines in the coming five years in the Telangana.

Singareni is planning to establish Kalyani Khani in Mandamarri and expansion of Abbapur -2 opencast mines in Tandur mandal.

It is assumed that certainly there will be new opencast mines and expansion of existing opencast mine. 

The move is snowballing into a major controversy with dissent from the oustees and people’s organizations. The TJAC led by M. Kodandaram took up the issue and chalked out an action plan to fight opencast mining.

Many social activists and environmentalists joined the hands with the people being affected with opencast mines.

The oustees of Srirampur opencast mine belonging to Thallapalli and Singapur villages are still agitating for the payment of rehabilitation and resettlement pack offered to them while evacuating them from their villages.

District police wrote a letter to the district administration asking it to clear the compensation to the oustees without delay as agitations for compensation creating law and order problem in the Mancherial area.

Now, villagers of Erraguntapalle have been agitating opposing the KK opencast mine saying that they will not give away their fertile lands and opencast mines destroy environment and cause pollution.           

Peddapelli Laxmaiah of Thallapelli village in Mancherial mandal complained that he was yet to get Rs 15 lakh compensation for his lands acquired under Srirampur opencast mine in 2005. 

According to sources, Singreni is planning to establish few new opencast mines in the eastern part and also in the west part of the district.

In its surveys, Singareni found coal deposits were between Srirampur of Mancherial to Sirpur(T) en route Bellampalli, Tandur, Rebbena, Asifabad, Sirpur ( T) and along the river Pranahitha.

Singareni claims that coal deposits also found near Movvad in Asifabad mandal located close to the historical place Jodeghat in Kerameri mandal and along the river Penganga and in Bela mandal in the west part of the district.

Singareni management has stopped mining coal from Goleti-IA underground mine in Rebbena mandal. The Dorli –I and II opencast mines and Khairiguda opencast mines are in operational.