Coal and Power Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday said the Supreme Court judgement on coal blocks should be seen as a big plus for the Indian economy while dismissing apprehensions about the 14 per cent dip in metals stocks.
Terming the closure of the dispute after several years of litigation as a ``big plus’’, Mr. Goyal said the bourses and investors should be pleased with the ``finality’’ on the issue. The Indian economy can now move rapidly rather than be circumscribed by the shadow of uncertainty, he added.
Scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi later in the evening, the Minister said the ``clarity in policy transparency that Modi is famous for, for which he has been elected, has been respected by the Court. ‘’
``Clarity of law and policy and certainty about the future are the hallmarks of a good economy and the judgement will be liked by the economy,’’ he told newspersons hours after the Supreme Court cancelled all allocations made between 1993 and 2010 as they were not done on the basis of competitive bidding.
At the same time, the Minister pointed out that the Court had set September 1 as the next date when it will consider the consequences arising from the verdict.
Asked about the fate of companies left without coal blocks, Mr. Goyal told newspersons, ``I think you missed the point. It is important there is finality to the dispute. Whatever the Supreme Court decides will be respected. The question is thus hypothetical. Irrespective of the decision, it will be in the interest of the country.’’
``Last five years, the production of coal has not kept pace with the generation of power. This has caused much distress leading to stranded assets, banking non performing asset and people crying for power. I think will be in interest of India,’’ he added while terming the Court judgement as ``tremendous, very long and detailed.’’
On the way ahead, Mr. Goyal said this is a new Government that has just come into office with fresh thinking and an open mind. ``We will consider all options. The Government is prepared to act quickly once the final decision is made. To serve people with adequate power, we need more coal. Decision will be taken expeditiously to increase indigenous production of coal,’’ he observed.
