Kolkata: The Centre is adopting a carrot and stick policy to raise the level of coal production in India, which still is the country’s primary source of energy. In a two-pronged strategy, the coal ministry is squeezing the time limit for making a new coal block operational and at the same time, activating penal provisions in existing acts for captive coal block owners, said Union coal secretary Sumanta Chowdhury here on Wednesday.
He was speaking at the stakeholders’ consultation on issues related to coal sector organised by Ficci in the city. This year, the coal production target is 800 million tonne, out of which 660 million tonne is from Coal India.
In an effort to make sure operators can operationalise their coal blocks in the least possible time, the Centre is amending the MMDR Act to scrap redundant approval requirement by states and is looking at increasing the number of coal exploration agencies in the country through accreditation and empanelment. It is also focusing on coal evacuation infrastructure.
