Bhubaneswar: A total of 18,979 acres of forest land in Odisha was diverted for mining purposes in the last five years.
This is among the whopping 46,759 acres of the diverted forest land across the country.
Between April 1, 2019 and March 31 this year, the Environment Ministry gave 179 approvals to 17 states to carry out mining of minerals and coal, The Tribune reported.
Odisha leads the chart followed by Madhya Pradesh at 8,417 acres, Rajasthan at 1,207 acres, Himachal Pradesh at 211 acres and Uttarakhand at 59 acres, the report added.
In July, Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav had told the Lok Sabha that Odisha diverted a whopping 18,979 acres of forest land, highest in the country, for non-forestry use between April 2019 and March 2024.
Odisha had forwarded 48 proposal for diversion of forest land for mining activities during the period and approval was accorded for diversion of 18,979 acres for mining operations. The approval was granted in mining projects for use of forest land for non-forestry purpose under Van (Sanrakhan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam Act, 1980.