Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday met his cabinet colleagues in charge of coal and power ministries amid concerns about power crisis in many parts of the country due to coal shortage.
New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday met his cabinet colleagues in charge of coal and power ministries amid concerns of power crisis in many parts of the country due to coal shortage. During the hour-long meeting, the three ministers are believed to have discussed the availability of coal to power plants and the current power demands. Senior bureaucrats as well as officials of public sector energy conglomerate NTPC Limited also attended the meeting.
Several states have warned of blackouts, although the central government has assured that India has enough coal reserves to meet the demand for its power plants, so fears of possible blackouts in Delhi and other cities are futile.
The Coal Ministry said in a statement on Sunday that the current fuel stock at coal-fired plants is around 7.2 million tonnes, which is enough for four days.
State-owned mining company Coal India also has a stock of over 40 million tonnes which is being supplied to power stations.
"Any fear of any kind of crisis in power supply is completely false," the ministry said.
The clarification from the ministry came a day after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal warned of a power crisis in the city with a population of over 2 crore.
In recent months, many regions across India have faced short supply of coal, forcing power utilities to resort to unscheduled power cuts.
Several states have warned of blackouts, although the central government has assured that India has enough coal reserves to meet the demand for its power plants, so fears of possible blackouts in Delhi and other cities are futile.
The Coal Ministry said in a statement on Sunday that the current fuel stock at coal-fired plants is around 7.2 million tonnes, which is enough for four days.
State-owned mining company Coal India also has a stock of over 40 million tonnes which is being supplied to power stations.
"Any fear of any kind of crisis in power supply is completely false," the ministry said.
The clarification from the ministry came a day after Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal warned of a power crisis in the city with a population of over 2 crore.
In recent months, many regions across India have faced shortage of coal supply, forcing power supplying units to resort to unscheduled power cuts.
India's coal-fired power stations had an average of four days of stock at the end of September, the lowest in many years.
The reduction in India, the world's second largest coal-consuming country, comes after widespread power cuts in China. The power crisis in China forced the closure of many factories and affected production and global supply chains.
Coal accounts for about 70 percent of India's electricity generation and nearly three-quarters of fossil fuels are mined domestically.
Heavy monsoon rains in India, Asia's third largest economy recovering from the Coronavirus wave, flooded coal mines and disrupted coal transportation, leading to a sharp rise in prices for coal buyers, including power stations. International coal prices have also gone up.