Auction of coal linkages for diverse industrial uses and exports, , ensuring fair access and optimal resource utilisation
AMN / NEW DELHI
The government has approved the ‘CoalSETU’ policy, creating a new window for the auction of coal linkages for diverse industrial uses and exports to ensure fair access and optimal utilisation of the resource.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday gave nod to the Policy for Auction of Coal Linkage for Seamless, Efficient & Transparent Utilisation (CoalSETU). Briefing the media in New Delhi last evening about cabinet’s decisions, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, the policy will allow allocation of coal linkages on an auction basis for long-term for any industrial use and export by adding a separate window named ‘CoalSETU’ in the NRS (Non-Regulated Sector) Linkage Auction Policy of 2016. He said, any domestic buyer requiring coal can participate in the linkage auction, irrespective of the end use.
The coal linkage obtained under this window will be for own consumption, export of coal, or any other purpose (including coal washing) except resale in the country. Coal linkage holders will be eligible to export coal upto 50 per cent of their quantity and flexibly utilise the fuel among group companies as needed.
The Cabinet has cleared Budget of 11,718 crore rupees for conducting Census 2027. Mr Vaishnaw said, Census 2027 will be conducted in two phases. He said, it will be the first ever digital Census. He said, Census 2027 will be the 16th in the series and 8th since Independence. He said, India’s Census is considered as the largest administrative and statistical exercise in the world. Caste Enumeration will be included in Census 2027. Data will be collected using mobile applications that will be available for both Android as well as iOS versions. Mr Vaishnaw said, 30 lakh field functionaries will be involved in the entire exercise.
Census 2027 will cover the entire population in the country. The process involves visiting each and every household and canvassing separate questionnaire for Houselisting and Housing Census and Population Enumeration.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs also gave its approval for the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for copra for 2026 season. In order to provide remunerative prices to the cultivators, Government had announced in the Union Budget of 2018-19, that MSP of all the mandated crops will be fixed at levels of at least 1.5 times of all India weighted average cost of production.
The MSP for milling copra has been increased by 445 rupees to 12,027 rupees per quintal while the MSP for ball copra for the same period has been raised by 400 rupees to 12,500 rupees per quintal for the 2026 season. The MSP has been fixed for the ‘fair and average quality’ of both milling and ball copra. Mr Vaishnaw said, a higher MSP will not only ensure better remunerative returns to the coconut growers but also incentivize farmers to expand copra production to meet the growing demand for coconut products both domestically and internationally.