Domestic coal quality has gone up substantially: Centre

The ministry said that there had been substantial improvement in conformity to the declared grade of coal supply from Coal India (CIL) sources.

New Delhi: The ministry of coal said the quality of domestic coal has increased considerably and coal companies have taken various measures to achieve the objective of supply of quality coal to all consumers.

The ministry said that there had been substantial improvement in conformity to the declared grade of coal supply from Coal India (CIL) sources. The grade conformity has jumped to 69 per cent in 2022-23 which is till November 22, as against 51 per cent in 2017-18, according to the statement released on Tuesday evening.

Some of the steps taken by the ministry and the firms for the improvement in quality are periodic re-gradation of coal mines, the introduction of improved mining technology like surface miners, supply of washed coal, first-mile connectivity for direct conveying of coal on belt from coal surface or face to rapid loading, silo and installation of auto analysers, among others.

The ministry said different officials or agencies were entrusted with the job of ensuring supply of coal in conformity to the declared grades. Primary reason for grade variation is the inherent heterogeneous nature of Indian coal itself meaning, calorific value of coal extracted within the same seam at different points tends to vary, the statement added.

The Coal Controller Organisation (CCO), a subordinate office under the ministry, regularly assesses and declares coal mines’ grades including undertaking annual coal mine or loading points grade declaration exercises, the Ministry said.

For enhanced customer satisfaction, the Ministry said special emphasis had been given to quality management of coal from the mine to dispatch point. It also added now, all the consumers of CIL have the option for quality assessment of the supplies through independent third-party sampling agencies (TPSA). These accredited third-party agencies have been engaged to ascertain Coal Quality from loaded coal wagons or lorries as per prescribed norms under BIS standards.

To infuse quality awareness at the mines-end, the Ministry said coal companies also organise quality weeks, and fortnights on regular intervals with active participation of consumer representatives. The persistent monitoring, increased awareness drives and corrective measures is showing improvements in quality conformity in coal supply.