Environmental tragedy: Cong slams tree felling for Adani coal project in MP

The Congress on Tuesday sharpened its attack on the Adani Group, accusing it of “procedural short-circuiting” to clear vast stretches of forest land in Dhirauli, Madhya Pradesh, for a coal mine — an operation the party described as an “environmental tragedy” and a “social and economic disaster” for Adivasi communities whose livelihoods depend on the forests.

The allegations land at a moment when the national debate over environmental governance has been heightened by a recent Supreme Court decision to recall its own earlier judgment that had barred the Union government from granting retrospective environmental clearances — a move widely criticised for giving a potential free pass to violators.

Though the Adani Group and the Madhya Pradesh government have not responded to the latest charges, the state has previously dismissed all allegations as “baseless”, asserting that every statutory requirement has been met.

Congress MP general-secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh, however, insisted that “Modani & Co.” had bypassed mandatory procedures to gain access to forest land. “Reports have now emerged that large-scale tree felling has begun in the village under heavy police presence,” he said, adding that villagers have been prevented from approaching the site, outsiders barred, and MP Adivasi Congress president Ramu Tekam arrested for protesting.

Ramesh, a former Union environment minister, warned that the clearing of the forest would destroy the economic base of Adivasi families, who rely on forest produce, seasonal harvesting and grazing. “This is an environmental tragedy and a social and economic disaster for the local Adivasi tribes,” he said.

His criticisms are not new. In September, Ramesh alleged that tree-cutting had begun without compliance with the Forest Rights Act — particularly the requirement for Gram Sabha consent — and claimed that the Modi government had “imposed” the project on Madhya Pradesh in 2019 before accelerating it in 2025 despite “essential legal clearances” being incomplete.

The state government countered that the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) had granted Stage-II (final) approval. Ramesh rejected that claim, citing a 2023 coal ministry reply in the Lok Sabha that classified the mining area as falling under the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, which mandates extra safeguards for Adivasi land and forest rights.

After he repeated his objections last week, the environment ministry issued a formal rebuttal insisting that both Stage-I and Stage-II clearances were “duly granted” and that claims of constitutional violations were “misleading”. Ramesh called this “false”.

The latest conflict fits in with a pattern of environmental disputes surrounding several other high-profile Adani projects. In Gujarat’s Mundra, the conglomerate’s port and power complex has long been embroiled in complaints over mangrove destruction, coastal erosion and thermal pollution.

In Chhattisgarh’s Hasdeo Arand, Adivasi communities and ecologists continue to oppose coal block allocations that threaten dense, biodiverse forests. In Kerala, the Vizhinjam port — constructed by Adani Ports — has been linked by residents and scientists to accelerated coastal erosion and displacement of fishing families.

And in Jharkhand, environmental assessments of Adani coal mines have raised alarms about groundwater depletion and fragmentation of forest corridors.

Against this broader backdrop, Dhirauli has become more than a local dispute. For the Congress, it encapsulates what it calls a systemic erosion of environmental safeguards, an alarming readiness to push extractive projects into ecologically sensitive zones, and a troubling pattern in which clearances appear to follow rather than precede corporate activity.

For Adivasi groups, the immediate concern is the loss of forest land, grazing rights, minor forest produce, and cultural spaces that cannot be restored once destroyed.

Meanwhile, the Madhya Pradesh government maintains that all clearances are in place and that the project is vital for economic development and energy security. But the combination of heavy police deployment, restricted access to forest areas, and the arrest of local leaders has deepened distrust on the ground. The Supreme Court’s reversal on retrospective clearances adds yet another layer.

For now, tree-felling reportedly continues. What remains uncertain is whether the political, legal and ecological questions surrounding Dhirauli will be addressed before the forest is gone — or whether, as critics fear, the clearance process will once again trail behind the chainsaws.

With PTI inputs