Govt mulling to reduce upfront payment for larger coal blocks to attract investors

To attract global and domestic investors to the coal sector, the government is mulling reducing the upfront payment for larger coal blocks, according to sources. The matter had come up for discussion during the meeting of a high-level committee under the chairmanship of Niti Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar last month, sources privy to the development said.

“During the meeting, it was discussed that for larger blocks the upfront payment was more. So in order to attract investors, it was opined that the upfront payment should be reduced,” the source said. Besides Kumar, the high-level committee consists of Niti Aayog CEO, Cabinet Secretary, Mines Secretary and Coal Secretary among others. The panel has been constituted to look into the overall improvement of the coal sector, the source added.