India's coal reserves have been assessed at 285.86 billion tonnes as of April 1, 2011, about 3.25 per cent higher than the previous year's 276.8 billion tonnes.

Of this, the proven reserves are estimated at 114 billion tonnes or 40 per cent of the total reserves, according to the National Inventory on Indian Coal Resources published by the Geological Survey of India. The latest proven reserves represent a 3.6 per cent increase over previous year's 110 billion tonnes.

At current level of production of about 550 million tonnes, the coal reserves will last for more than 100 years, Coal Minister, Mr Sriprakash Jaiswal, told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply. However, exploration is a continuous process and new resources get added year on year, Mr Jaiswal added.

Replying to another query, Mr Jaiswal said 216 coal blocks with geological reserves of about 50 billion tonnes have been allocated to public and private companies. Of this, 24 coal blocks have been de-allocated due to the delay in development.

The net allocated blocks stood at 194 with geological reserves of 44.44 billion tonnes, of which 28 have come into production. The rest of the blocks are in various stages of development, Mr Jaiswal said.

Increase in demand

Further, Mr Jaiswal said the increase in coal demand has resulted in pressure on both government companies as well as captive blocks to enhance production. Major constraints such as land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement issues, delay in forestry and environment clearances are affecting the timely implementation of the projects, Mr Jaiswal added.

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