Archive · 17 Sep 2026
Centre Questions Uttar Pradesh Delay in Jharkhand Coal Block Development
Uttar Pradesh was given a coal mine in Jharkhand in 2015 to supply fuel to its power plants.
The mine is called Saharpur-Jamarpani and has more than 973 million tonnes of reserves.
The Centre says the state has not done enough to start the mine.
Because the mine is not operating, Coal India Limited continues to supply coal to Uttar Pradesh.
The government says the power plants currently have enough coal.
Their coal stocks increased between September 1 and September 15.
Some plants have problems unloading and moving the coal they receive.
The Centre says these operational problems, rather than a coal shortage, helped keep power generation lower.
The Centre said Uttar Pradesh has made no significant progress developing the Saharpur-Jamarpani coal block since its 2015 allocation.
The coal block in Jharkhand’s Dumka district has reserves exceeding 973 million tonnes and was allotted to UPRVUNL on August 13, 2015.
Coal India Limited continues supplying coal to Uttar Pradesh thermal plants because the captive mine has not begun operations.
The Ministry of Coal said UPRVUNL plants had adequate stocks, which rose from 7.25 lakh tonnes on September 1 to 8.41 lakh tonnes on September 15.
The ministry attributed lower generation to operational issues, including unloading constraints, rather than coal shortages, with plant load factor around 48%.
- Who
- The Ministry of Coal, Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Limited, and Coal India Limited.
- What
- The Centre urged Uttar Pradesh to speed up development of the delayed Saharpur-Jamarpani captive coal block.
- When
- The block was allotted on August 13, 2015; coal-stock figures cited cover September 1 to September 15, while the ministry referred to supplies over the previous 10 days.
- Where
- The Saharpur-Jamarpani coal block is in Dumka district, Jharkhand; the supplied thermal plants are in Uttar Pradesh.
- Why
- To reduce Uttar Pradesh’s dependence on external coal supplies and improve long-term fuel security.
- Coal block
- Saharpur-Jamarpani
- Allocated to
- Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Limited
- Allocation date
- August 13, 2015
- Coal reserves
- More than 973 million tonnes
- Coal India supply
- About 17.7 rakes daily on average over the previous 10 days
- Coal stocks
- Increased from 7.25 lakh tonnes on September 1 to 8.41 lakh tonnes on September 15
- Plant load factor
- Around 48%