Strapped by a multitude of constraints, most importantly those posed by a new environment index, Coal India Ltd (CIL) may end the current fiscal with a production which may be around 20 million tonnes lower than the targetted 460.5 million tonnes in 2010-11.
Production between April and December 2010 has been around 299.52 million tonnes, which is 26 million tonnes lower than the target for this period. The production marks a small increase over the output during the same period in 2009. Indications are that CIL may end the year clocking a growth rate of less than two per cent which would be the lowest in recent times.
Accordingly the 2010-11 target has now been officially revised downwards from the earlier 460.5 million tonnes to 440.5 million tonnes. This was decided after a presentation was made before the Planning Commission. The Union Coal Ministry has approved this downward revision.
All efforts are now geared towards making up the 26-million tonne shortfall suffered till December 2010, so that the gap is narrowed, a senior official told The Hindu on conditions of anonymity.
The budget estimates for the terminal year of the XI Plan has now been reworked again and fixed conservatively at 447 million tonnes against the 486 million tonnes fixed last year.
The new index developed by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, the Comprehensive Environment Pollution Index (CEPI) has alone lopped off 16 million tonnes from the production basket, sources said, adding that all proposals had been stalled due to this.
This comes over and above the failure to implement greenfield and brownfield projects for want of forestry and environment clearances. Law and order problems in some of the coal companies, the Maoist threat and problems over supply of heavy earth moving equipment have also contributed to the difficult situation, but more recently, two major hurdles posed by the go and no go criteria for mining companies have virtually stalled any expansion plan.
Some hopes are now being pinned on the Group of Ministers which was announced on Wednesday after a meeting between the environment ministry and the coal ministry failed to sort out the contentious issues.
