To meet the burgeoning coal demand of the country, Mahanadi Coalfield Limited (MCL), comprising of coalfields of Orissa, has been given a target to produce 112 million tonne of coal in the current fiscal as against 103.12 MT output achieved last year.
In contrast, the number one subsidiary of Coal India (CIL), South Eastern Coalfield Limited (SECL) has been asked to produce 117 million tonne of coal in the current year (2012-13) which is only 3.16 MT more than last year’s achievement of 113.84 MT.
On percentage terms, MCL’s target is 8 percent higher than the previous year’s achievement while same for SECL works out to two percent.
Reeling under pressure of nationwide cry for coal, CIL in the current financial year has fixed a target of 464 MT coal production, up from 435.84 MT last year, an increase of 6 per cent (28.16 MT).
Except SECL and MCL, no other company under CIL has the obligation to produce more than 100 million tonne coal this year. .
It is not the first time that MCL has been given the lion’s share of the responsibility to boost the CIL’s coal production as the Orissa based company has borne this burden in the past also. Any slump in the MCL output has had a bearing on the CIL performance like in 2010-11 when MCL production remained stagnant restricting CIL within 431.32 MT.
It is under the stewardship of chairman and managing director, A.N.Sahay that the MCL, despite multiple adversities, produced 103.12 MT of coal, three million tonne more than the previous year.
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The CIL record shows that last year, out of the 4.5 MT higher output achieved by CIL, three million tonne was contributed by MCL. If this growth rate is maintained, MCL will be the number one coal company under CIL umbrella within two years time, said the sources.
MCL CMD, Sahay termed the target a big one and said if the company is provided land and the support of the state government as well as local people, the production can be stepped up meeting the needs of the nation. MCL has gone the extra miles to provide flexible rehabilitation and resettlement packages to its land losers to create a conducive working atmosphere in and around coal fields, he added.