Lok Sabha Question No. 514 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2015-07-23
Subject: Shortage of Coal
Ministry: COAL
Asked by: BAIJAYANT "JAY" PANDA

**GOVERNMENT OF INDIA**

**MINISTRY OF COAL**

**LOK SABHA**

**UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 514**

**TO BE ANSWERED ON 23.07.2015**

**“Shortage of Coal”**

**514. 	SHRI BAIJAYANT JAY PANDA:**

Will the Minister of COAL be pleased to state:

(a) the total movement of coal in the country – both from pit heads and ports to centers of consumption;

(b) whether the country is facing shortage in the supply of coal;

(c) if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;

(d) whether the movement of coal across the country affected by shortage of railway wagons; and

(e) if so, the quantity of coal that could not be transported due to lack of wagons and the steps taken by the Government in this regard?

**A N S W E R**

**MINISTER OF STATE (I/C) IN THE MINISTRY OF COAL, POWER AND NEW & RENEWABLE ENERGY**

**( SHRI PIYUSH GOYAL )**

**(a):** Total coal supply in the country during the last three years is as under:

(in Million Tonnes)

| Year                  |   Indigenous Coal |   Imported Coal |   Total All India Coal Supply |
|-----------------------|-------------------|-----------------|-------------------------------|
| 2012-13               |            567.60 |          145.79 |                        713.39 |
| 2013-14               |            572.49 |          166.86 |                        739.34 |
| 2014-15 (Provisional) |            607.85 |          215.95 |                        823.80 |

**(b)&(c):** In the Annual Plan for 2015-16, All India Coal Demand has been assessed to be 910 MT against which supplies from indigenous sources has been planned at 699.97 MT [Coal India limited (CIL) : 550 MT; Singareni  Collieries  Company Limited(SCCL) : 56 MT & Others including captive blocks : 93.97 MT] with a shortfall of 210.03 MT which is envisaged to be met through imports by consuming sectors.

The reasons for gap in demand and supply of indigenous coal is the limited availability of requisite quantity and quality of indigenous coking coal and constrained growth in indigenous coal availability and infrastructural & operational bottlenecks in coal transportation in major coal bearing States of Jharkhand and Odisha.

**(d)&(e):** In 2014-15,  as against  the wagon loading target of 218.2 rakes/day by CIL,  actual wagon loading was 194.5 rakes/day only. Considering 3800 tonnes to be quantity carried in a rake, the difference between target and loading to the tune of 23.7 rakes/day works out to  32.87 Million Tonnes. However, this shortfall in loading is not attributable entirely to shortage of railway wagons. This is also a function of fluctuations in demand,  disruption in  local transportation and traffic flows, congestion on select routes and terminals, etc.

The issues relating to expeditious implementation of various railway infrastructure for coal movement is monitored at various levels of the Government.  Through the forum of Rail Coal Interface, CIL facilitates higher level coordination between Coal Companies and Zonal Railways and takes up with Railway Board various operational and commercial issues hampering coal movement.

In order to address the issue of lack of adequate rail infrastructure for evacuation of coal, three critical rail links  have been identified for expeditious completion and MoUs have been signed by coal companies with  State Governments of Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Jharkhand.

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