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Jaiswal asks CIL to expedite setting up of washeries

Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal has pulled up Coal India Limited (CIL) for continuous delays in setting up washeries and has asked it to expedite the work.

‘The Coal Minister was unhappy about the delays in setting up of coal washeries and has asked Coal India to speed up the work of commissioning of washeries,’ a top coal ministry official said.

The directions were given to the coal PSU at a review meeting of CIL and its subsidiaries held recently under the chairmanship of the Coal Minister.

CIL assured the ministry that around five washeries would be set up by end of this year, the official said. A coal washery is a plant that enhances the quality of the fuel by cleaning it.

The miner had said in June that it would place orders for at least seven coal washeries by the current fiscal.

The government had earlier said that not a single washery of CIL could be commissioned during the 11th Five-Year Plan period (2007-12), mainly due to delays in environmental clearances and non-availability of land.

The ministry had stated that CIL would set up 20 washeries with a combined capacity of 111 million tonnes to help realise a better price for its produce. Of these, 13 were for non-coking coal and the remainder for coking coal.

The Standing Committee on Coal and Steel had earlier pulled up CIL for delays in setting up of washeries and asked the company to prepare an action plan to expedite the work.
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