The Ministry of Coal has, in its presentation to a parliamentary panel, said the gap is not due to shortfall in availability of coal, but due to a subdued demand from various sectors.
India's demand-supply gap of coal has widened from 15.5 million tonnes during 2015-16 to 55.3 MT during 2016-17, a massive jump of 256.77% sparked by shrinking industrial production, the government has admitted. The revelation comes at a time when Central Ministers have been countering the Opposition's charges of economic slowdown.
The Ministry of Coal has, in its presentation to a parliamentary panel, said the gap is not due to shortfall in availability of coal, but due to a subdued demand from various sectors.
A 31-member parliamentary panel led by BJP's Rahesk Singh felt concerned that there is a steady decline in the supply of coal to non-regulated sectors like steel, cement, sponge and iron.
The government admitted before the panel that these sectors had to face a bad patch for consecutive years, leading to less dispatches of coal. Also, it was found that cement plants had been using petroleum coke, derived from oil refining process and having high pollution content, as a substitute of coal. Recently, the apex court restricted use of petroleum coke in Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana to curb pollution in the National Capital Region.
The index of industrial production released in June also revealed that factory output has hit a two-year low and contracted by 0.1%. Fifteen out of 23 industry groups from the manufacturing sector reported negative growth.
The government, however, said it was in process of addressing issues to revive growth and production. "This (low growth rate) is due to three factors - (low) investment by private sector, which is also related to the ability of banks to support growth. Since GST (Goods and Services Tax) was to be rolled out from July 1, de-stocking took place in June and July. It resulted in higher sales, so services in fact went up," said Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
Factory output hit
- The index of industrial production released in June also revealed that factory output has hit a two-year low and contracted by 0.1%
- Fifteen out of 23 industry groups from the manufacturing sector reported negative growth
- The govt, however, said it was in process of addressing issues to revive growth & production
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