Energy Minister V Sunil Kumar on Monday clarified that the current crisis of inadequate supply of coal will be resolved in two days with additional two rakes of coal reaching Karnataka. The minister clarified that no thermal unit in Karnataka is shut for want of coal, even as the power generation was brought down by a few megawatts.
Speaking to media persons on the sidelines of inducting the newly recruited junior power men to Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) in Bengaluru, Sunil Kumar said, “A rake of coal dispatched from Mahanadi Coal Fields in Odisha will be reaching Karnataka on Tuesday. One more rake of coal which is being loaded on Monday will arrive on Wednesday and this will resolve the crisis.”
Explaining further the minister said, “We were supplied with about 10 rakes all these days. Now, we have requested the Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi to increase it to 14 rakes. Out of these, the two rakes of coal will be immediately delivered to our thermal plants and the other two will arrive in November.”
Acknowledging that the shortage of coal has led to serious problems in the state, Sunil Kumar said, “We are anxious and trying our best to resolve the crisis. Led by CM Basavaraj Bommai, we have submitted a memorandum to the Union government and it has responded quickly to our request.” He further revealed that generation at thermal plants was brought down by a few megawatts but no thermal unit was shut due to the shortage of coal.
In the meantime, the state government has appealed to the Union Environment and Forests Minister Bhupender Yadav to grant permission to carry out coal mining at Mandakini and Baranji in Maharashtra, where coal blocks were allocated to Karnataka. “As soon as we get permission to extract coal, we will proceed with that work as well ensuring an adequate supply of coal to Karnataka,” Sunil Kumar explained.
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