Feb 03: ECL recognised and celebrated outstanding operational performance across its Areas for the month of January 2026 during the GM Coordination Meeting held at its Headquarters, Sanctoria. The awards were presented by Shri Satish Jha, CMD, ECL, in the august presence of Md. Anzar Alam, Director (Finance), Shri Niladri Roy, Director (Technical/OP), Shri Gunjan Kumar Sinha, Director (HR) and Shri Girish Gopinathan Nair, Director (Technical/P&P) along with senior officials of the Company.
Awards for January 2026 Performance
Best Division (Overall): Project and Planning Department, ECL
Best Performing Areas (Overall):
1. First Prize: Jhanjra Area
2. Second Prize: Pandaveswar Area
3. Third Prize: Satgram–Sripur Area
Special Category Awards:
1. Best in SDL/LHD Productivity: Kajora Area
2. Best in CM Productivity: Bankola Area
3. Best in Capacity Utilisation: Salanpur Area
Best in Safety: Sodepur Area
Congratulating the award-winning teams, Shri Jha commended their sustained efforts, discipline and commitment towards enhancing productivity, safety and operational efficiency. He emphasised that such consistent performance is vital in strengthening ECL’s contribution to national energy security.
On the occasion, Shri Jha also felicitated Coordination Group members who superannuated in January 2026—Shri Omprakash Choubey, Area General Manager, Mugma Area and felicitated the members retiring in February 2026 – Shri Ashok Kumar Anand, Area General Manager, S.P. Mines Area, Shri Atanu Adhikari, General Manager, Systems Department and Smt. Sujata Dasgupta, HoD – RTI/Nidan Cell – in recognition of their dedicated and meritorious service to the organisation.
The event further marked a historic professional milestone for ECL with the felicitation of Ms. Aishwarya Sarkar, Assistant Manager (Mining), Safety Department, Kenda Area. Ms. Sarkar became the first female Mining Engineer from ECL to successfully clear the First Class Mines Manager Certificate of Competency (Un-restricted) conducted by the Directorate General of Mines Safety (DGMS). She secured 78.5 marks out of 100 in the examination held on 09 December 2025, achieving this distinction in her first attempt.
A graduate of IIEST Shibpur (2022), Ms. Sarkar joined Coal India Limited in January 2023 as a Management Trainee (Mining) at Jhanjra Project Colliery, ECL. She gained her initial two years of practical experience in the underground mines of Jhanjra, India’s highest-producing underground mechanised coal mine.
The management of ECL congratulated Ms. Sarkar on her exemplary achievement, describing it as a proud moment for the organisation and a testament to ECL’s commitment to safety, professional excellence and inclusive growth.