New Delhi: India’s standalone coal production topped the billion tonne-mark on Thursday (March 20), a feat that drew applause from prime minister Narendra Modi, who credited the “monumental milestone” to the “dedication and hard work of all those associated with the sector”.
“A Proud Moment for India! Crossing the monumental milestone of 1 billion tonnes of coal production is a remarkable achievement, highlighting our commitment to energy security, economic growth and self-reliance….” Modi posted on microblogging site X.
Giving credit to the prime minister’s “visionary leadership”, coal and mines minister G Kishan Reddy posted on X that, “With cutting-edge technologies and efficient methods, we’ve not only increased production but also ensured sustainable and responsible mining. This achievement will fuel our increasing power demands, drive economic growth, and ensure a brighter future for every Indian.”
Notably, the current coal output hit the billion tonne-mark by crossing the 2023-24 milestone of 997 million tonne 11 days before the close of the current financial year. On March 24, 2024, then coal minister Pralhad Joshi had in a social media post said India’s combined production of coal and lignite had crossed a billon tonne, “assuring energy security to the nation”.
The milestone bodes well for power consumers ahead of summer when power stations need more fuel to meet rising electricity demand. Coal-fired plants supply 70% of electricity flowing in the national grid.
As on March 31, 2014, two months before Modi took office for the first term, India’s coal production stood at 565.6 million tonne. The steady rise in output since then has reduced coal import, saving foreign exchange. Available data for the April-December 2024 period shows India’s coal imports declining by 8.4%, resulting in forex savings of $5.4 billion (over Rs 42,315.7 crore) as compared to the same period of last year.
India largely has thermal coal with high-ash content. It has to depend on imports for metallurgical coal and fuel for imported coal-based power plants.
The reforms initiated in 2014, which were partly prompted by the Supreme Court’s 2014 decision to strike down allocation of 218 mines since 1993 without bidding, laid the ground for the steady growth. The allocations, the federal auditor CAG had earlier said, resulted in a presumptive loss of nearly Rs 1.8 lakh crore to the exchequer— which was first reported by TOI in 2012.
The pace of production growth gathered momentum in Modi’s second term as the seeds of reforms sown in the first term began yielding dividend. The reforms were broadly focused on raising production and mining efficiency with technology induction, building connectivity for evacuation and opening up the sector for private miners.
