From barren mine dumps to green ecosystems, the Madhya Pradesh cadre officer is using scientific restoration, native plantations and community participation to revive degraded landscapes.
Open-cast coal mining can leave behind landscapes dramatically different from the forests and ecosystems that once occupied them. Massive overburden dumps, unstable slopes, exposed soil and erosion can make ecological recovery difficult even after mining activity ends.
IFS officer S. Deepika is working to address that challenge through mine-land restoration projects across Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Her work focuses on converting degraded mining areas into functional green ecosystems through terrain stabilisation, native plantations, long-term maintenance and community participation.
According to a September 2026 profile by Indian Masterminds, nearly 1,500 hectares of degraded mine-dump and overburden land have been targeted under the restoration initiatives, with more than 30 lakh trees planted across Western Coalfields Limited (WCL) areas.
Restoring Land Beyond Plantation
Mine restoration is not simply about putting saplings into the ground. Overburden dumps created during open-cast mining can have steep and unstable slopes, poor soil conditions, erosion problems and harsh microclimates. These factors can significantly affect whether newly planted vegetation survives.
Deepika’s restoration approach therefore includes preparing and stabilising mine dumps before plantation. Terracing or benching the slopes can help control erosion and create more suitable areas for vegetation.
The projects also emphasise indigenous tree species, selected according to local environmental conditions. Dedicated field teams monitor plantations and provide maintenance after planting.
The reported survival rate for conventional plantations is around 80%, with maintenance continuing for five years. Such long-term care is important because planting numbers alone do not indicate whether a restoration project has successfully established a functioning ecosystem.
Turning Mine Dumps Green
The scale of the restoration work is significant. The reported projects cover large stretches of land that were previously dominated by mining overburden and degraded terrain. Over time, plantations can help stabilise soil, reduce erosion and dust, increase green cover and create habitats for biodiversity.
The restoration programme has also been associated with an estimated carbon-sequestration potential of approximately 7,000 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent annually, according to the report.
However, carbon storage is only one part of the ecological value of restoring mined land. A successful restoration landscape can also improve soil conditions, support vegetation growth, provide habitat and gradually reconnect fragmented green spaces.
The Miyawaki Experiment
One of the more distinctive approaches associated with Deepika’s work is the use of the Miyawaki method at Saoner.
The technique involves planting native species at high density, allowing vegetation to compete for sunlight and resources and potentially develop into a dense plantation relatively quickly.
The Saoner project has reportedly reached nearly 30,000 plants per hectare. The high-density plantation has shown rapid growth and canopy development, providing an alternative model for accelerating green-cover formation on degraded land.
The approach does not replace conventional ecological restoration everywhere, but its use demonstrates an effort to experiment with different plantation strategies depending on site conditions.
Restoration With Local Communities
Environmental restoration also has a social dimension. The programme has involved local communities, including women from rural and mining-affected areas of Vidarbha, in plantation and restoration activities. Their participation provides livelihood opportunities while giving communities a direct role in the recovery of landscapes affected by mining.
For regions where mining has shaped local economies and environments for decades, involving residents in restoration can help connect ecological recovery with local livelihoods.
It also shifts restoration from being solely an institutional exercise to one in which communities can participate in planting, maintenance and long-term stewardship.
A Larger Rehabilitation Programme
The restoration work is part of a broader institutional effort to rehabilitate mining landscapes.
Deepika’s division reportedly secured a five-year mine-area rehabilitation programme worth approximately ₹150 crore in WCL areas. The programme brings together plantation, mine-land rehabilitation and long-term ecological management.
The larger goal is not merely to make former mining sites appear green. It is to develop landscapes that can remain stable and ecologically functional over time.
This distinction is particularly important in mine restoration. A landscape covered with young trees may look transformed, but genuine ecological recovery requires vegetation survival, soil stability, biodiversity and continued maintenance.
From Mining Damage to Ecological Recovery
Deepika’s work illustrates the growing importance of restoration in landscapes shaped by extractive industries. Coal remains an important part of India’s energy system, but mining inevitably creates environmental pressures. Restoring mined areas after extraction is therefore an essential component of responsible land management.
The projects led by Deepika demonstrate one possible pathway: stabilise the land, use locally appropriate species, monitor survival, maintain plantations over several years and involve communities in the process.
The reported scale nearly 1,500 hectares targeted and more than 30 lakh trees planted—offers a sense of the ambition behind the work. Yet the longer-term measure of success will be whether these plantations mature into resilient ecosystems capable of sustaining themselves.
The Logical Indian Perspective
Mine restoration is ultimately about more than replacing trees lost to extraction. It is about rebuilding the ecological functions of landscapes that have been heavily disturbed.
S. Deepika’s approach places scientific restoration, native vegetation, long-term maintenance and community participation at the centre of that process. If sustained successfully, such efforts can demonstrate how landscapes once associated with mining can gradually become spaces for forests, biodiversity and ecological recovery.
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