Less than one day coal left in many places: Delhi Minister

Delhi Power Minister Satyendar Jain on Friday said that there was a severe coal crisis across the country and many places have just one day of reserve left.

Raising the alarm over the ongoing coal crisis, Jain said, "No (power) backup (is there)... (the) coal backup should be for over 21 days, but at many power plants, less than a day's (stock) is left".

He further added, "If electricity is being produced, and we keep getting it, there's no issue. But if the power plant shuts down it will be problematic (in Delhi)...There's a coal shortage in the country," said Jain in a media briefing, a day after he held an emergency meeting over the issue.

"There is a huge shortage of power in the country. So far we have managed it somehow in Delhi. The situation is very grave in the whole of India. Together we soon need to find its solution. Quick, concrete steps are required to tackle this problem," Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi.

The Delhi Power Minister held an emergency meeting on Thursday over the issue and wrote to the Centre requesting it to ensure adequate coal availability to power plants supplying electricity to Delhi.

"Due to disruption of power supply from Dadri-II and Unchahar power stations, there may be a problem in 24-hour power supply to many essential institutions, including Delhi Metro and Delhi government hospitals," the government said in a statement on Thursday. - IANS