Raw coal production in the country has increased from 567.77 million tons (MT) in 2013-14 to 730.35 MT in 2018-19, Union Coal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said in Lok Sabha. He said that India had to import 234 MT coal last year for which it lost Rs 1.7 lakh crore foreign exchange.
“All India raw coal production increased from 565.77 MT in 2013-14 to 730.35 MT in 2018-19, an absolute increase of 164.58 MT as compared to increase of coal production of 73.01 MT between 2008-09 and 2013-14,” he said during Question Hour.
The minister said while there was a positive growth in production in the first quarter of the current year (April- June 2019), production has been slipping since July. This is largely because of heavy rainfall witnessed in coal mining areas of the country, he said.
