The Supreme Court of India cancelled 214 coal blocks allocated to private companies since 1993, deeming them illegal. And one of these coal blocks brings us to the story of Mahan, one of the oldest Sal forests in Asia and livelihood to more than 50,000 people...Mahan was always an example of the illegalities and irregularities in the coal sector…the story of Mahan has been one of corruption, dirty tactics and intimidation. The allocation of the mine to Essar, which was deemed "illegal" by the Supreme Court, is just the start to the can of worms that is the case of Mahan...The story of Mahan is not just the story of one of the oldest sal forests in India, but of every coal block that's in a forest.