Coal output falls to nearly 414 mt

Coal production in the country slumped to 413.9 million tonnes (mt) in the current financial year up to January, compared to 424.5 mt in the year-ago period, the government said on Wednesday. The fall in production comes at a time when acute fuel shortage is hurting the power sector. Minister of state for coal Pratik Prakashbapu Patil while replying to a written question in Lok Sabha attributed the shortfall in coal production to delay in clearances from the ministry of environment and forests and excessive rainfall among others.