3 states agree to expedite rail projects for coal evacuation

Three states -- Jharkhand, Odisha and Chhattisgarh -- have agreed to resolve issues like land acquisition to fast-track ongoing rail projects for evacuation of coal.
After day-long deliberations with Union Minister Piyush Goyal on policies related to power coal sectors, 18 states which attended the meeting agreed that they would make timely efforts for environment, forest and other clearances required at the state level. The Centre would provide necessary help.
According to resolutions adopted in the Conference of Power and Mines Ministers of states and UTs held here, state power utilities will endeavour to import coal as per requirement to achieve the plant load factor targets.

Earlier in the day, Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal in the meeting said: "It's a wake up call for all of us, Supreme Court is hearing the matter as we speak. The accountability and transparency standards throughout the country in every action of the government has to become more transparent, subject to more probity."
"The focus of today's meeting should be policy improvement. We can meet some other time to discuss the problems and specific issues of states," he said.
An official statement said, "Jharkhand, Odisha and Chhattisgarh resolved to attend to land acquisition and other issues expeditiously for completing the ongoing three critical rail projects."

The states also agreed to provide active support to achieve the production target of one billion tonnes of coal by 2019, the statement said.

The states resolved that their power utilities will clear outstanding dues towards coal companies expeditiously.
The states "would endeavour that adequate long/Medium term procurement of power will be put in place alongwith a reliability framework done in a time bound manner for assured supply of electricity to consumers," the statement said.
The state governments would endeavour to reduce AT&C loss as per the agreed trajectory and over achievement of the target by the State would be appropriate incentivise, it added.

Goyal said the Centre would require cooperation from the state governments to achieve its aim of providing 24x7 power to every household in the country in the next five years.
"We can become a diesel and generator free country and production of 1 billion tonnes of coal by 2019 is achievable. We need states' co-operation," he had said adding that 18 per cent growth in coal production is possible "if we work together".
Of the 29 states and five UTs, representatives from 18 states attended the meeting.