India News | Ensure Adequate Availability of Coal at Power Plants: CM Gehlot to Officials

Jaipur, Mar 4 (PTI) Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday directed officials to ensure adequate availability of coal at power stations in the state.

He said storage of coal should be done as per the rule at coal-based power stations of Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam so that there is no obstacle in power generation anywhere in the state.

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Chairing a review meeting of the Energy Department, he directed the officers to have regular coordination with the Union ministries concerned for the supply of coal and its early lifting, a press release said.

Energy Department officers told the CM that the price of imported coal is continuously increasing. The rate of imported coal a year ago was around USD 87.5 per tonne, which rose to USD 220 per tonne last month and currently is around USD 440 per tonne, they said.

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"This is also increasing the cost of electricity generation," the release said.

Additional Chief Secretary (Energy) Subodh Agarwal informed about the availability of coal and efforts being made to increase the stock and early lifting from the mines.

Minister of State for Energy Bhanwar Singh Bhati, Chief Secretary Usha Sharma and other officers were present in the meeting.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)