While several resource rich countries like China, Indonesia and also US, to some extent, focused the power sector in their post-Covid economic stimulus packages, India focused on opening up the mining sector, the start point of the industrial and manufacturing processes.
The auctioning is part of the series of announcements made under the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative with an aim that India is expected to save around ₹30,000 crore annually on import bill of thermal coal once commercial mining from these mines pick up.
“Atmanirbhar Bharat means India doesn’t need to import coal and can use that money to spend on social welfare. Whatever we import now, we would be exporting them. We will take each and every product and service and work holistically to make India self-reliant on every such sector,” the Prime Minister Narendra Modi said during the event.
“We are also taking coal sector out of the impact of the lockdown as well. A country which is part of the largest producers of coal with fourth largest coal reserve should be the largest exporter as well,” he added.
“For India importing coal is a sin,” coal minister Pralhad Joshi said at the event inaugurated by the Prime Minister where coal ministry officials and industry representatives like FICCI President Sangeetha Reddy, Chairman of Vedanta Group Anil Agarwal and Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekharan highlighted and appreciated the move.
Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister said the government was focusing on achieving self-reliance, not only in coal and the energy sector, but in the economy as a whole.
This story is from the June 2020 edition of Coal Insights.
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This story is from the June 2020 edition of Coal Insights.
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