Nagpur: Highlighting that the country is blessed with enough coal deposits to fulfil its need, Union Minister for Coal and Mines G Kishan Reddy on Thursday said, the Government has set a target of producing one billion tonnes of coal this year in a bid to avoid its shortage, especially in the summer season.
Reddy was addressing the 19th Triennial Convention of Akhil Bharatiya Khadan Mazdoor Sangh (ABKMS) held at Dr Hedgewar Smriti Bhavan, Reshimbagh, Nagpur. At the outset, G Kishan Reddy paid tributes to Dr Hedgewar memorial at Reshimbagh Smruti Mandir along with Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh Coal Industry In-charge K Laxma Reddy; Deputy General Secretary Surendra Kumar Pandey; President of Akhil Bharatiya Khadan Mazdoor Sangh Tikeshwar Singh Rathore; General Secretary SudhirGhurde.
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In his address, the Minister further said that the Government is working on augmenting coal production as India’s energy demand is rising rapidly. “To make India ‘Viksit Bharat’ by 2047, we will have to be self-reliant in coal production. We are aware that coal will play a major role in making the country a developed nation and thus, we are aggressively increasing its production. Our coal production has gone up as compared to previous year and the Government is further increasing the production,” he said, adding that coal production is very important for the next 50 years to achieve the aim of Viksit Bharat.
The Minister said India is the second largest consumer of coal after China and also the largest coal producer after the neighbouring country. More than 74 per cent of electricity generation in the country is coal-based. India is also taking steps to reduce coal import, he said. “In addition, the country is also acquiring critical mineral blocks in Argentina through Khanij Bidesh India Limited (KABIL).
The joint venture company is exploring lithium in Argentina. We are going out of the country to meet our growing demand for minerals,” he said. KABIL is a JV company formed by NALCO, HCL and MECL, the CPSEs under the Ministry of Mines. It is entrusted with the important mission of identifying, exploring, acquiring, and developing critical and strategic mineral assets overseas. Reddy said that there is a huge demand for critical minerals like lithium and copper.
Reddy also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had directed him to prepare an action plan for proper coal storage, to ensure welfare of farmers, land for coal production and safety of coal mine workers to meet the ever rising energy demand. “We are working on addressing these concerns,” he said. In an attempt to create jobs, he said the Government is encouraging underground coal mining. “These mines create more jobs as compared to open cast mines. Increased mining activities will create employment opportunities,” he added.
While doing so, the Minister said, the Government is committed to rolling out various welfare programmes for coal mine workers. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi is working with commitment for the safety and welfare of the employees working in the coal mine,” he added.
About 800 representatives from various parts of the country participated in the two-day convention. Chairman-cum-Managing Director of Western Coalfields Limited – Jai Prakash Dwivedi; Vice President of ABKMS Narayan Rao Sarathakar; Deputy General Secretary of ABKMS Ashish Murti, Media Incharge of BMS Suresh Choudhary and Deepak Singh Chauhan; Treasurer of ABKMS Jayant Asole; and others were also present.
