The removal of the red soil layer to start basalt mining at the site of the proposed coal mine at Deocha-Pachami was halted on Tuesday morning following a protest by tribal people who wanted the government to resolve land-related issues.
The disruption has caused fresh embarrassment for both the state government and the Trinamool Congress as the project has been promoted as a major industrial success story of Mamata Banerjee ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.
On the first day of work to start basalt mining on February 6, the administration faced a similar protest that delayed the start of the work.
To start the extraction of coal, basalt mining — removing the layer of black stone above the coal — needs to be completed first. Workers were engaged to dig up the earth and remove the red soil above the basalt.
Although officials remained confident on Tuesday that the issue was entirely local and the hindrance was temporary, the top brass of the government emphasised the need for ground-level officials to take such micro-level protests seriously to prevent a larger movement.
“This is an important project as it is a dream of our chief minister. We are surprised that police intelligence failed to anticipate the protest, which resulted in the halting of basalt mining work,” said a senior official in Calcutta.
“There should be no lackadaisical attitude to ensure that the project progresses without any disruption as this is not a minor project,” the senior official added.
During a meeting on Monday, the chief minister praised the Deocha-Pachami project, saying primary work to excavate coal had begun and the government had provided jobs to those who had parted with their land.
According to a source, a group of tribal people from Sagarbandhi village, which is in the area where the first phase of the coal mining will be undertaken, went to the site of the basalt mining on Tuesday morning. They stopped the work by putting up a charka — the tribal tradition of installing at the place of work a stick tied with hay. The ritual signifies that till the charka is removed, work can’t resume.
“We want industry to come to this area. However, the protest and the placement of the charka stem from dissatisfaction as the government has not kept its promises. We hope the government will fulfil the demands of the local tribal people before proceeding with the project,” said Rabin Soren, the president of the tribal outfit Disham Adivasi Gaonta.
A source said the protesters, mostly women, said many local people had not received the government’s promised compensation because of unresolved land-related disputes.
“Among the affected people, around 200 families are living on government land and fear they will be evicted without proper compensation. Senior officials assured us that their issues would be resolved, but no action has been taken yet,” the source added.
The soil removal before the basalt mining began a day after Mamata had said at the Bengal Global Business Summit on February 5 that the project was the state’s most significant industrial initiative.
As soon as news of the work disruption reached the state secretariat, Nabanna, on Tuesday, senior administrative and police officials in Calcutta and Birbhum were directed to ensure that work resumed as soon as possible.
Birbhum district magistrate Bidhan Ray, police chief Amandeep and additional district magistrate Babulal Mahato arrived at the protest site to negotiate with the demonstrators and request them to allow the work.
“The officials are holding discussions with the protesters to address their concerns. We hope everything will be resolved and work will resume tomorrow (on Wednesday),” said a senior official in Calcutta.
An official in Birbhum said the protestors had reluctantly agreed to allow the work to continue and remove the charka from the site. “However, we are waiting to see if the work resumes tomorrow,” the official added.
A source indicated that the government aimed to begin the basalt excavation as soon as possible and hoped to start it by mid-April.
“Currently, excavation is underway to reach the basalt layer, which is 90 feet below the surface. So far, we have dug up to 30 feet, and it will take a few more days to reach the basalt layer,” the source said.