INDIAN RAILWAYS UPDATE: The scorching heat has led to a significant surge in the demand for electricity across the country. Coal is necessary for power generation in power plants and a hindrance free mobilization of coal all over the country is needed to deal with the coal shortage. To tackle the issue, the Ministry of Railways has decided to cancel 1100 passenger trains for the next 20 days to make way for goods trains transporting coal to regions where there is a deficit. The cancellation of trains includes 500 trips of express trains and 580 trips of passenger trains.
Coal helps generate around 70% of India’s electricity, Bloomberg has reported in this issue. Shortage of electricity occurred in states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha and people had to endure frequent power cuts, following which the central government held several meetings to tackle the coal shortage. This step was taken to facilitate faster mobilization of coal-laden trains.
According to Railway Board Chairman VK Tripathi, there has been a 20% increase in the demand and consumption of coal since last year. In April this year, 15 per cent more coal has been transported in comparison to April 2021. He said that additional coal rakes are being operated on higher priority as compared to mail and express trains. Union Energy Minister RK Singh, while acknowledging the shortage of coal, said that the Russia-Ukraine crisis and non-payment of dues to coal companies added to it.
Even last month, as many as 670 trips of passenger trains were curtailed until May 24 to tackle the same issue. The move had caused some inconvenience to people travelling to and from coal producing states like Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand.
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