Date | March 03, 2017:

The low coal production in Talcher coalfield has negative fallout on coal royalty collection accrued to Odisha. According to the Deputy Director of Mines of Talcher L D Nayak, the royalty collection by the end of the last month stood at Rs 772 crore as against the target of Rs 899 crore. It is also less than Rs 43 crore than the last year collection by this time which was at Rs 815 crore from Talcher. Royalty is collected by state at the rate of 14 per cent on the sale price of coal. Coal royalty has been one of largest revenue accruals to state coffers. The DDM, however, said that due to less coal production at Talcher , the collection has been affected. He said efforts are on to make up the shortfall in the remaining period. Mr Nayak said that state government has fixed the target of royalty at Rs 1000 crore in the current financial year. In last financial year the target was Rs 960 crore when the collection was posted at Rs 985 crore, he added. There are eight mega open cast and two underground coal mines at Talcher which accounts for the sixty per cent coal output of Mahanadi coalfield Limited.This year due non availability of land and other problems, five mines namely Balram Ananta, Jaganath and Bharatpur and Kaniha are showing poor production till date.

According to a top MCL official, the annual target for Talcher was fixed at 105.65 million tonne but by the end of the last month it achieved 72 MT only.

The MCL officials are trying very hard to achieve a positive growth at least in the one month left in the fiscal.

(Source: http://news.webindia123.com/)