Relaxing norms for private coal mining unlikely to attract investment

The government would do better to create a market for natural gas

The government decision to open up coal for commercial mining is an excellent decision — only, it has just missed the bus. It has finally set up a market for the fuel when global mining investors are unlikely to underwrite coal mining. India, meanwhile, is delaying the creation of a market for natural gas, which is the obvious switchover fuel on the road to renewable energy. The big news flow from the global energy economy is about investments in gas and in hydrogen but we are missing those.

These are the reasons why India’s plan to allow commercial coal mining