India Coal Supply to Punjab Plants Adequate, Ministry Says

Coal supplies to Punjab's power plants are adequate and Coal India Limited is committed to uninterrupted fuel delivery, the Coal Ministry said Sunday.

Higher utilisation of Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd's own plants, better monitoring of breakdowns at independent power producers (IPPs), and timely lifting of coal already offered by Coal India subsidiaries would all help optimise generation and meet the state's needs, the ministry said in a statement.

The clarification follows media reports that a deepening power crisis in Punjab has led to 14-hour cuts hitting factories and farms. Those reports attributed reduced thermal generation to plant outages and inadequate coal supply.

The ministry pushed back, saying the central government has