Coal-bearing states got `3,653 cr from mines allocation, says Goyal

"The coal bearing state governments have received an amount of Rs 3,653 crore till June 2017 from the allocation of coal blocks/mines under the provisions of Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015," Goyal said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

"Under the aforesaid Act, provisions of the entire revenue from allocation (auction and allotment) of coal blocks / mines ... accrues to the coal bearing State Government concerned," the minister said.

The utilisation of the revenue generated from the allocation of coal mines under the provisions of the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015 is the prerogative of the coal bearing state government, the minister added.

Meanwhile, the government on Thursday said that coal cess will contribute to the GST compensation fund, a corpus meant for compensating states for revenue losses in the wake of shifting to the new indirect tax regime.

The cess on coal has been continued at Rs 400 per tonne under the GST regime.

"The Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Act, 2017...notified on April 12, 2017 provides that coal cess, along with some other cess on pan masala, tobacco, aerated water would constitute GST Compensation Fund and the same would be utilised to compensate states for five years for potential losses on account of GST implementation," Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. After five years, any amount left would be shared on 50 per cent basis between Centre and States, the minister said.

The long-awaited GST, India's biggest tax reform, was rolled out on July 1. Replying to a separate question, the minister said that a total of 14,305 gas-based power generation plants are stranded in the country due to non-availability of domestic gas.

India, the third largest coal producer in the world, imported 190 million tonnes of the fuel worth over Rs one lakh crore in 2016-17 fiscal, Parliament was informed on Thursday.

Minister of State for Coal Piyush Goyal in a written reply to Lok Sabha said 190.95 million tonnes (provisional) of coal valued at Rs 1,00,231.3 crore was imported in the last fiscal.

The minister further said in 2015-16, 203.9 million tonnes (MT) of coal valued at Rs 86,033.8 crore was imported, while in 2014-15, the import stood at 217.7 MT worth Rs 1,04,506.6 crore.

In 2013-14, the country imported 166.8 MT of coal worth Rs 92,329 crore, the minister said. The gap between demand and supply, Goyal said, cannot be bridged completely as there is insufficient domestic availability of coal and power plants designed on imported fuel will continue to import for their production.