Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy has said that India is currently in a strong position when it comes to coal availability and power security, with enough stock to support electricity generation for around 80 days.

Speaking to reporters in Hyderabad while highlighting the work done under the NDA government since 2014, he said that “the government has coal reserves sufficient for 80 days of power generation. Since the monsoon season has begun, coal production could face disruptions due to heavy rainfall,” adding that this reserve has been carefully built to ensure there is no disruption in electricity supply even if mining slows down during the monsoon season due to heavy rainfall.

He further explained that earlier India used to face coal shortages, but the situation has now changed significantly. According to him, “earlier there used to be a shortage of coal,” but now the system has been strengthened and adequate stock has been maintained to avoid any crisis in power production.

Moreover, Reddy mentioned that this hoarding has been conducted under the guidance of the Prime Minister in order to ensure energy security in the nation. In his remarks, Reddy emphasised that it was essential to have these reserves since coal production may be hampered due to the monsoon period.

Along with update on coal reserves, he also mentioned about other improvements in the sector like rising annual coal production levels and ongoing work in critical mineral exploration, but his main focus was that India now has enough coal reserves to keep electricity generation smoothly for nearly three months without any disruption.