RAIPUR: Despite 20 percent of the total coal production in the country, various thermal power plants and industries in Chhattisgarh are starving for a sufficient supply of fuel. Over 7000 mega watt (MW) capacity industies have been shut down due to lack of coal available to them.
Chhattisgarh has nearly 18 percent of the nation’s coal reserves. South Eastern Coalfields Ltd (SECL), a subsidiary of Coal India Ltd (CIL), operates with a production target of 165 million tons annually, though the state requires just 19 percent of it, which is around 32 million tons for coal-fired power stations and industries.
However, merely 50 percent of the state’s small requirement of coal are cited to be met. Owing to huge coal reserves in Chhattisgarh over 200 units have set up their operations expecting convenient access to coal supply from the mines. But the coal excavated in the state are being sent outside which not only “deprived the local industries but also causing annual loss to the state exchequer of Rs 200 crore” and hampering the local economy.
