The government issued directives on Tuesday, urging owners of coal blocks in advanced stages of commissioning to expedite operationalization, targeting an anticipated production of 145 million tonnes (MT) of coal from commercial and captive blocks in FY24. This production surge aims to curtail the country's reliance on fossil fuel imports.

Chairing a review meeting overseeing producing and anticipated captive and commercial coal mines for 2023-24, M Nagaraju, Additional Secretary and Nominated Authority at the Ministry of Coal, emphasized the importance of prompt action by companies allocated coal blocks to meet this fiscal year's production targets.

In a statement, the coal ministry highlighted that coal production from captive/commercial mines during April 1, 2023, to November 20, 2023, reached approximately 80 MT, marking a robust year-on-year growth of 23% compared to the same period in FY 2022-23.

Regarding the auction of coal blocks, the ministry clarified on Wednesday that following the cancellation of 204 blocks in 2014, the mines have been subjected to auction through a transparent mechanism. This statement was issued in response to Congress' allegations about the Modi government altering the coal block allocation policy and favoring the Adani Group.

The coal ministry emphasized that the auction process has been transparent and adheres to various end-use categories, encompassing power and non-regulated sectors. The ministry also highlighted that Cavill Mining Pvt Ltd cannot be established as an affiliate of the Adani Group as per the tender document's provisions, adding that any misrepresentation detected during the auction process allows the Ministry of Coal to take appropriate actions in line with the tender document's clause 5.12.