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Paper short abstract:

This paper argues that any coal closures must be viewed as a part of a larger ‘extractive continuum’, where the larger political narrative on decarbonisation coexists uncomfortably with the continuous range of extractive activities undertaken by the state and its allies.

Paper long abstract:

The end of coal in a major fossil fuel extractor like India is an exciting prospect for global climate enthusiasts. And yet, the country’s stated intent to decarbonise by 2070 does not translate into any specific point in time or space for coal mining to end. This paper argues that any coal closures must be viewed as a part of a larger ‘extractive continuum’, where the larger political narrative on decarbonisation coexists uncomfortably with the continuous range of extractive activities undertaken by the state and its allies, relating to a wide range of subsoil and terrestrial resources. The paper theorises the ‘end of coal’ from the ground up, drawing on intensive research in a strategically important but understudied coalfield within Odisha, a key coal producing state of the country. In-depth research in 3 villages within the Ib Valley Coalfield in north-western Odisha confirms this continuum of coal extraction, with the consequences of land acquisition staggered over decades and tightly bound with the micro level politics of resettlement and compensation. Strategic calculations by coal proponents in agreements reached with dispossessed groups vastly reconfigure the coalfield geography, while limiting the abilities of coalfield communities to disrupt extraction. This extractive continuum of coal, stretched across time and space, constrains local agency and resistance, precluding a grassroots imagination, let alone involvement, in envisioning a coal-free future.