NEW DELHI, October 17 — The Ministry of Coal announced on Saturday that cumulative dry-fuel despatches to thermal power utilities registered an impressive 18% year-on-year growth during the first half of the current fiscal year, reinforcing national power generation security.
Aggregate supplies from Coal India Limited (CIL), Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL), and commercial captive blocks exceeded 425 Million Tonnes to utility stations nationwide. This logistical expansion was driven by rapid commissioning of First Mile Connectivity (FMC) conveyor systems, multi-modal rail-sea-rail corridors, and dedicated freight paths, which accelerated turnaround cycles for Indian Railways coal rakes.
The Ministry highlighted that average coal inventory stocks at non-pithead thermal generating stations stand above 18 days of consumption buffer, virtually insulating the national electricity grid against unexpected weather supply disruptions and saving billions of rupees in avoided imported thermal coal purchases.
The historical evolution of the coal sector (nationalisation acts of 1971–1973, end of commercial mining monopoly in 2020), corporate profile of Coal India Limited (Maharatna PSU established in 1975), the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Acts, and energy balance economics are staple components of UPSC GS-III and economic geography curricula.