NEW DELHI: Amid the ongoing power crisis due to coal shortage in the country, the power engineers on Saturday demanded a high level enquiry on the present coal crisis. All India Power Engineers Federation (AIPEF) also urged the government to withdraw Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2021 and all sorts of privatization in the Power Sector.
“The power ministry, in overcoming the crisis on the one hand imposing on the state governments and generating companies to import coal and on the other hand providing relief to private power plants that have been designed and sanctioned to run on imported coal,” said Shailendra Dubey, chairman of AIPEF. “An independent inquiry should be constituted into the coal crisis that has enveloped the country during the summer of 2022 and is likely to extend into the monsoon,” he added further.
The federation blamed the central government for the coal crisis. They highlighted various reasons including the withdrawal of reserves of Coal India Ltd to the tune of ₨. 35,000 crores, directives to Coal India Ltd to invest in the fertilizer industry thereby neglecting its primary function for meeting coal demands, non-appointment or delayed appointment of key executives such as CMD CIL for several years.
“The government should take the responsibility and centrally import the coal and ensure that the imported coal is properly blended with domestic coal through Coal India. The price of the blended coal should be based on the same principles and basis as the pricing of the Indian coal. The Govt of India should bear the extra cost of imported coal,” suggested the federation.
They have also termed Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2021 as anti-people and anti-employee.