After Amit Shah, PMO to review coal situation today amid fears of power crisis

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Oct 12, 2021: The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) is likely to conduct a review meeting over fears of a power crisis as India grapples with a critical coal shortage.

 

This comes a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a meeting with power minister RK Singh, coal minister Pralhad Joshi and other cabinet ministers in charge of the coal and power ministries to discuss the issue.

While coal minister Pralhad Joshi has said there is "absolutely no threat of disruption" in electricity supply, multiple states have raised urgent concerns over blackouts due to the coal shortage.

Several chief ministers, including Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and Punjab’s Charanjit Channi, have written to the Centre as the power situation turns grim and urged PM Modi’s intervention to ensure supply of coal to the states.

According to Central Electricity Authority of India data, the country is facing an unprecedented shortage of coal stocks in thermal plants which could lead to a power crisis. On October 5, out of 135 thermal plants that use coal for power generation, 106 or nearly 80 per cent were either in the critical or supercritical stage, i.e. they had stocks only for the next 6-7 days.The Centre has cited several factors that led to the current coal shortage; from a sharp rise in demand as post Covid-19 second wave recovery gains strength, heavy monsoon rainfall in certain areas that affected movement of coal, to sharp rise in imported coal prices that led to plants dependent on such supplies reducing output.Union Power Minister R K Singh chaired a meeting with BSES officials, the NTPC and the power ministry on Monday and confirmed that there was no problem related to supply and demand channels that could pose a power crisis.

Courtesy:India Today