Rajasthan govt concerned about nationwide shortage of coal supply: Gehlot

Jaipur: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday said the state government is concerned about the nationwide shortage of coal supply, and also making efforts for timely supply of DAP fertiliser.

The state government is continuously coordinating with the Centre to increase their supply, Gehlot said in a statement.

While addressing a review meeting on the status of power and DAP (diammonium phosphate) supply in the state on Tuesday, the chief minister said best management is being done at every level for smooth supply of electricity in the state.

He said officers have been deployed in Singrauli and Bilaspur to augment the supply of coal. Senior officers of the state government, additional chief secretary, energy and principal secretary agriculture have been sent to Delhi for coordination with senior officials.

It was informed in the meeting that the state government is ensuring advance payment for the supply of coal to Coal India Ltd and its associate companies NCL and SECL. There is no delay in payment at any stage, according to the statement.

Rajasthan Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Ltd (RVUNL) has paid the entire dues of Rs 393 crore to National Coalfields Ltd (NCL) in August 2021 itself. After this, under the fuel supply agreement from September 2021, the company is now being paid in advance for regular supply of coal.

An advance payment of Rs 228 crore has been made to NCL from September 1 to October 8.

Similarly, SECL's outstanding of Rs 50 crore has been adjusted in July 2021. Along with this, dues of Rs 135 crore have been paid in the month of August this year. After this, advance payment to SECL has also been started from September 2021. An advance payment of about Rs 92 crore has been made to the company from September 6 to October 4.

It was also informed in the meeting that due to lesser imports this year, the gap between demand and supply of DAP has increased across the country, affecting Rajasthan along with other states.

During April-September this year, the central government supplied only 3.07 lakh tonnes of DAP against the demand of 4.50 lakh tonnes in the state.

Also, against the demand of 1.50 lakh tonnes in the month of October, 68,000 tonnes of DAP has been approved. This has led to shortage of DAP in the state.

As per the statement, the state government is making continuous efforts to improve the supply of DAP. The agriculture minister and the principal secretary to the government of the Department of Agriculture are coordinating with the officials of the Union Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers and are making efforts to improve the DAP supply.