Congress leader and former Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh on Saturday (May 23, 2026) highlighted that coal mining has been allowed in the dense forests of Madhya Pradesh's Singrauli and hoped that the matter receives sensitivity, scrutiny and urgency from the courts.

In a post on X, Mr. Ramesh said in May 2025, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change "predictably cleared" a proposal from the "Modani empire" to mine coal in the very dense forests of Singrauli district in Madhya Pradesh.

"The area involved is about 7,000 acres and is very much part of the 'no go' area for mining identified in 2011 because of the richness of the forests and also because of the presence of elephant corridors. More than six lakh trees will be felled.

"The clearance had been challenged by environmental activists in the National Green Tribunal. In April 2026, the NGT ruled that the challenge was late and that the petitioners should have approached the NGT earlier. As a result of this delay, the NGT declined to hear the challenge on substantive grounds," the Congress leader claimed.

He said the NGT order was then challenged in the Supreme Court.

On May 21, the Supreme Court, after hearing arguments on the question of delay in filing the challenge, allowed the petitioners to withdraw the challenge and pursue other appropriate remedies available under the law, Mr. Ramesh pointed out.

"This means that the issue remains open to challenge. It is to be hoped that such a matter, involving significant ecological and public interest concerns, continues to receive the sensitivity, scrutiny, and urgency it deserves from the High Court — and of course, the Supreme Court, which distinguished itself on the Aravalli issue recently," the Congress leader said in his post.