Key Details
The Coal Controller Organisation’s SUVIKALP tool assesses how closed and abandoned coal and lignite mines could be reused. The Ministry of Coal now plans to expand its use and develop promising options into site-specific projects.
Site assessment: SUVIKALP compares potential uses using mine characteristics, environmental conditions, infrastructure, resource constraints, costs and local economic factors.
Community priorities: It incorporates RECLAIM, a community-engagement framework, so local preferences and livelihood needs form part of the assessment.
Project preparation: Its PRISM component provides planning guidance and reference material, including project concepts, case studies, sample tender documents and information on potential implementing agencies.
Next phase: The Ministry wants wider use across closed and abandoned coal and lignite mines, followed by site-specific feasibility studies and detailed project reports, exploration of funding partnerships, and monitoring of results.
The Tool Ranks Uses That Suit Each Mine
Closed mines differ in their land conditions, remaining infrastructure, environmental risks and proximity to communities. SUVIKALP brings these factors into a common assessment and ranks possible post-mining uses rather than assuming that one redevelopment model will work everywhere. Its method compares options against multiple criteria; a high ranking is a starting point for closer examination, not approval to build a project.
Community Needs Shape the Ranking
Through RECLAIM, the assessment also considers what nearby communities need from a former mine site, including employment, livelihoods and local infrastructure. That matters because restoring land and creating a viable local economy are related but different tasks. A technically suitable project may offer limited value if it does not address the needs of people whose livelihoods were tied to mining.
The New Emphasis Is on Getting Projects Ready
SUVIKALP’s PRISM component is intended to help users move from a ranked option towards a project plan. The Ministry’s next priorities — feasibility studies, investment, coordination and monitoring — acknowledge the distance between identifying a promising use and delivering one.
Policy Relevance
For mining regions, a closed site can remain an environmental liability or become part of a longer-term development plan. SUVIKALP gives mine owners and public agencies a way to compare options before committing land and resources. Its value will depend on whether site assessments lead to credible projects that address environmental conditions and create benefits communities can recognise.
The shift to project preparation brings questions that a ranking alone cannot settle: who will fund the work, who will maintain the site, and how will local people participate in decisions and benefits? Those answers will determine whether wider adoption of the tool changes outcomes after mine closure.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: When SUVIKALP identifies a suitable new use for a closed mine, who is responsible for taking it through feasibility, funding and delivery—and how will the nearby community influence that choice?
Follow the Full Update Here: SUVIKALP: Transforming Closed and Abandoned Mines Into Productive Assets