CBA Act 1957: Approval of this act from the Union Cabinet to make the land useful, unusable due to coal mining

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet has approved the policy for use of land acquired under the Coal Bearing Areas (Acquisition and  Development) Act – CBA Act, 1957. This has been done with the objectives of facilitating utilization of lands which are mined out or are practically unsuitable for coal mining and for increasing investment and job creation in coal sector.

The policy provides for utilisation of such land for the purpose of development and setting up of infrastructure relating to coal and energy. The CBA Act provides for acquisition of coal bearing lands and their vesting in Government company, free from any encumbrance. The approved policy provides clear policy framework for utilisation of those lands which are no longer suitable or economically viable for coal mining activities.  

The Government coal companies, such as Coal India Ltd. and its subsidiaries shall remain owner of these lands acquired under the CBA Act and the policy allows only leasing of the land for the specified purposes given in the policy. Government coal companies can deploy private capital in joint projects for coal and energy-related infrastructure development activities.

The Government company which owns the land would lease such land for specific period given under the policy and the entities for leasing shall be selected through a transparent, fair and competitive bid process and mechanism in order to achieve optimal value.

The Policy will help in realizing the goal of Atmanirbhar Bharat by encouraging domestic manufacturing, reducing import dependence and job creation. The policy will unlock land for various coal and energy infrastructure development activities that would encourage investment in backward areas of the country. Utilisation of already acquired land would also prevent fresh acquisition of land and related displacement and would promote local manufacturing and industries.