Infrastructure
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The central government is set to commission 14 critical coal-evacuation Railway projects for faster transportation of coal, Financial Express reports.
The status of these projects was reviewed in a meeting held under the chairmanship of Union Coal Secretary A.K. Jain last week.
According to the report, Jain has acknowledged that higher coal prices have caused thermal power generation from imported coal-based plants to fall to 3 per cent from the earlier 8 per cent.
It is likely to reduce further and inflict greater stress on the Indian Railways for the transportation of domestic coal.
That is because; the majority of the imported coal-based thermal plants are located on the coastal parts of India.
The first-mile connectivity projects are slated to cut down the required turnaround time of wagons or rakes.
The Coal Secretary echoed that doing so is integral for the fast and efficient transportation of coal. It thus enhances the importance of the aforementioned commissioned Railway projects.