This refers to the article "Policy on underground coal gasification likely soon" (October 14). While the government is likely to come up with a policy on underground coal gasification, it should also look at importing equipment used in countries such as Australia, China, Russia, Mexico, the US etc. to extract gas from the gassy coal mines in India. As of now these mines are lying vacant due to the need for adequate technology to reduce the gas levels to a safe level. In Australia, according to legislation, underground directional drilling is required to bring the gas to safe levels before an approval for mining is issued. In India, there are many mines in the eastern coal belt that can be a good resource for power generation.
The required equipment for this is not manufactured in India. Such equipment needs to be imported, but the end users are reluctant to import them because of the Directorate General of Mines Safety that has a cumbersome procedure, which insists on the local testing of foreign mining equipment.
Amar Bhasin Cherrybrook, Australia
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