In FY23, key coal-producing states, including Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and segments of Madhya Pradesh, played a pivotal role in contributing a staggering 75% of India’s total raw coal despatch, the ministry said. The need for increased coal production to sustain this momentum and power the nation’s growth trajectory is evident.

To meet this formidable challenge, the ministry of coal has embarked on a multi-pronged approach, which includes the promotion of Rail-Sea-Rail (RSR) transportation. This innovative multimodal system is poised to revolutionize coal movement within India, with a strong focus on enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, and optimizing logistics.

A key development in this initiative is the establishment of an Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) featuring representatives from the ministry of power, ministry of railways, and ministry of ports, shipping, and waterways. This high-powered committee is tasked with devising a comprehensive, long-term strategy for coal transportation across the nation.

Presently, railways constitute a substantial 55% of coal evacuation, a figure that the Ministry of Coal aims to elevate to 75% by FY30. The ministry’s commitment to expanding coal evacuation and diversifying evacuation routes to alleviate congestion has resulted in a series of measures aimed at promoting RSR as a primary mode of coal evacuation.

The ministry of coal is emphasizing the need to augment coal evacuation and enhancing alternative routes of evacuation to avoid congestion such as RS/RSR mode by FY’30. The committee has recommended several measures to promote RSR evacuation of coal to reach 112 MT by 2030, from the existing 40MT. This strategy offers multifaceted benefits. Firstly, it is likely to reduce congestion on the All-Rail Route by providing an additional alternative mode of coal evacuation. Secondly, it creates export opportunities by building infrastructure that can be utilized for exports in the future and lastly, RSR has significantly lower carbon footprint compared to ARR.

The coastal shipping mode of transportation, which is an economical and eco-friendly system for moving goods, has the potential to revolutionize India’s logistics industry. The ongoing efforts to augment coal evacuation such as RS/RSR, strives to achieve full capacity utilization of the ports along the Southern and Western coasts. This will enable efficient transportation of more coal to power houses in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh.

“Initiatives are underway to optimise the costs of delivering coal through RSR. Opting for Rail-Sea-Rail could potentially save around Rs. 760-1300 per ton in logistics costs for end users located in Southern India,” the ministry said.

Updated: 23 Aug 2023, 05:07 PM IST