Next round of commercial coal mine auction to take place in Jan 2021: Coal Additional Secretary

Shortly after awarding 19 coal mines under the first round of commercial coal mine auction, the govt is now planning to come up with the second round in January 2021
Next round of commercial coal mine auction to take place in Jan 2021: Coal Additional Secretary
  • Additional Secretary M Nagaraju said that there is a need to auction more coal mines and operationalise those that have been auctioned at the earliest

  • We are actually taking serious action on those who have been found laxed on obtaining the approvals/permissions, said the top bureaucrat

New Delhi: Shortly after awarding 19 coal mines under the first round of commercial coal mine auction, the government is now planning to come up with the second round in January 2021, said M Nagaraju, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Coal. While speaking during the 14th Indian Coal Markets Conference hosted by Mjunction, the top bureaucrat also said that there is a need to auction more coal mines and operationalise those that have been auctioned at the earliest in order to cut India's import bill. 

"The government is trying to put in a mechanism for faster operationalisation of mines. We had auctioned 98 blocks of which 33 are operational, and in November we auctioned 19 more blocks. So the task before the government and the allottees is to come together in a coordinated and harmonious manner to operationalise these mines as fast as possible. This is the only way to reduce imports and prevent foreign exchange expenditure," said Nagaraju.

'Govt taking action against those found to be lax at getting clearances'

Stressing on the need to operationalise auctioned coal mines at the earliest, Nagaraju said that some of the entities that have been allocated coal mines were found to be not taking interest and were lax at obtaining clearances. "We are actually taking serious action on those who have been found laxed on obtaining the approvals/permissions," he said. The top bureaucrat added that the Centre has also recently cancelled the allocation of some coal blocks.

The backdrop

Under the umbrella of Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, the government has aimed to cut down India's dependence on imports. Recently, Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi met Power Minister RK Singh and discussed the substitution of imported coal with domestic coal. The Centre also opened the coal mining sector to private players by launching the commercial coal mine auction earlier in June this year in a bid to increase domestic production of coal.

(PSU Watch– India's Business News centre that places the spotlight on PSUs, Bureaucracy, Defence and Public Policy is now on Telegram. Join PSU Watch Channel in your Telegram and stay updated)

logo
PSU Watch
psuwatch.com