New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday reiterated that the country should use the COVID-19 crisis as an opportunity to make India self-reliant.
PM Modi launched the auction of 41 coal mines for commercial mining and asked to become self-reliant in energy by reducing imports.
“India will turn this COVID-19 crisis into an opportunity. The country will reduce its dependence on imports. To make India self-reliant in the energy sector, a major step is beig taken today,” PM Modi said during the launch of auctioning 41 coal mines for commercial mining.
“We are not just launching the auction for commercial coal mining but bringing the coal sector out of decades of lockdown,” he said.
A two-stage electronic auction process is being adopted for allocation of the coal mines, according to an official statement. Upon the attainment of peak rated capacity of production of 225 million tonnes, these mines will contribute about 15 per cent of the country’s projected total coal production in 2025-26.
The move will provde direct employment to about 70,000 people and indirect employment to 2.1 lakh people. It is also expected to generate Rs 33,000 crore of capital investment in the country over the next five to seven years. These mines will contribute Rs 20,000 crore in revenue annually to the state governments.
