Coal India Limited’s Dhanbad-based subsidiary Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) has rolled out a project which aims to segregate sand from the overburden (OB) from its open cast coal mines for commercial use.
In coal mining parlance, OB is referred to the topsoil, rock, stone, and layers of earth which is removed by miners to get to the coal seam (coal deposits within layers of rock). Overburden is usually considered a spoil or waste.
The PSU has issued a work order to a Bokaro-based private firm for setting up a sand segregation unit at its Damoda open cast coal project in Barora area in its western Jharia Coalfields last month.
With it, BCCL has become the first CIL subsidiary in Jharkhand to roll out the OB to sand project. The private firm which has bagged the contract for sand segregation from OB has been mandated to segregate 1.1 million tonnes of sand per annum at the plant and carry out its commercial sales.
“Sand segregated from the plant can be used commercially for construction and government infrastructure projects,” a senior CIL official in Kolkata said.