SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, Sept 8: Union Minister of State for Coal Satish Chandra Dubey today held the Jharkhand government responsible for the power crisis in the state.
The junior coal minister, who had been on a two-day visit to Jharia coalfield, while talking with media persons at Koyla Nagar-based Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) headquarters in Koyla Bhawan, expressed shock and surprise that Jharkhand is in the dark but the entire country is lit up from its coal.
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“The Jharkhand government is completely responsible for power mess in the state. The state government does not make payment to the power companies from which it purchases resulting in the power sector stopping the supply of required power to the state,” said the minister.
He said that Coal India Ltd (CIL) has a share of 10% of the GDP of the country. He said CIL pays royalties to districts where it has mines and states for the development of the region. “It is the responsibility of the state government to monitor the development work,” he added.
Minister reviews Jharia fire situation with CIL chief
Satish Chandra Dubey, who arrived here on Saturday late evening from Ranchi, in his maiden visit to Dhanbad as coal minister today assessed the situation of Jharia fire areas and discussed with officers of Coal India Limited (CIL) Chairman PM Prasad, BCCL Chairman cum Managing Director Samiran Dutta and other senior officials of the coal company.