Guwahati, Sept. 14 -- Tensions ran high near Valni village in Kalmeshwar tehsil on Wednesday as a large group of villagers strongly opposed the proposed Dahegaon-Gowari coal mining project by Ambuja Cements Ltd., forcing officials to suspend a scheduled public hearing.

The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) had organized the hearing at 11:30 am to seek public feedback for granting environmental clearance to the 1,562-hectare underground coal mining project, which plans to extract up to 1 million tonnes annually.

However, as protests intensified and the crowd grew restless, MPCB officials halted the proceedings, citing safety concerns due to rising public unrest.

Residents from multiple villages, including Gowari, Sindhi Khairi,...