Iron Ore Push In Red Corridor: Centre Grants Forest Nod For 937-Hectare Beneficiation Plant In Maharashtra's Gadchiroli

The Central government has granted in-principle forest clearance for an iron ore beneficiation plant in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district, the Indian Express reported.

This in-principle approval paves the way for the diversion of 937 hectares of forest land and the felling of 1.23 lakh trees, IE reported citing Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change documents.

This decision comes as part of a broader push by the Maharashtra government to expand mining and industrial activity in the Left Wing Extremism affected region.

The approval to Lloyd Metals and Energy Limited (LMEL) permits the diversion of 937 hectares of forest land to be used in three regulated phases. The first phase will use 300 hectares, the second 200 hectares, and the remaining 237 hectares will be accessible only after compliance reviews of earlier phases, according to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

LMEL's beneficiation plant will process low-grade iron ore (hematite quartzite) extracted from its ongoing mining operations in Surjagarh.

In Surjagarh, operations began in 2016 but were disrupted by Maoist violence and tribal protests. In one major incident, Maoists torched 69 trucks and three earth movers at the site that year.

While security operations have reduced insurgent activity in recent years, the ecological cost of industrial expansion in Gadchiroli continues to raise questions among conservationists.

Compensatory afforestation for the diverted forest land has been proposed in Chiplun, Ratnagiri. The Gadchiroli District Mining Authority, recently formed and chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, is overseeing the expansion of mining activity in the region, which is rich in iron ore, limestone, and diamonds.