Context: The Ministry of Coal has established single window clearance portal for the coal sector to speed up the operationalization of coal mines.

• The launch also included the signing of agreements with 19 successful bidders during the first ever auction of coal blocks for commercial mining, which had concluded in November.

About Portal

• It is  a unified platform that facilitates grant of clearances and approvals required for starting a coal mine in India.
• The Portal is in the spirit of Minimum Government and Maximum Governance.
• It would be a milestone for Ease of Doing Business in the Indian Coal Sector
• The portal would be operationalised in a phased manner.
• The operationalisation of the coal blocks allocated to the 19 bidders would bring states annual revenues of Rs 6,500 crore and create more than 70,000 jobs.

Significance

• Coal sector plays a key role in our economy, a boost in the coal sector will directly boost India’s economy. 
• This platform will further our efforts by bringing huge investment and creating employment.

Why it is needed ?

• Presently, about 19 major approvals, or clearances are required before starting the coal mine in the country. 
• In the absence of a unified platform for grant of clearances, companies were required to approach different departments, leading to delay in operationalisation of the coal mines.” 
• Clearances including environment and forest clearances, wild life clearance, clearances related to safety, and rehabilitation of project-affected families among others are set to be granted via the portal which is already capable of providing approval for mining plans on launch

About Coal in India

• Coal is the main source of energy in India and is found in a form of sedimentary rocks and is often known as ‘Black Gold’.
• It originates from organic matter wood. 
• When large tracts of forests are buried under sediments, wood is burnt and decomposed due to heat from below and pressure from above. 
• The phenomenon makes coal but takes centuries to complete.

Coal can be classified on the basis of carbon content as follows

Anthracite: It is the best quality of coal which carries 80 to 95% carbon content. 

• It has the highest calorific value. It is found in small quantities in Jammu and Kashmir.

Bituminous: It carries 60 to 80% of carbon content and a low level of moisture content.

• It is widely used and has a high calorific value. It is found in Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.

Lignite

• It is often brown in colour. It carries 40 to 55% carbon content. 
• It has high moisture content so it gives smoke when burnt. It is found in Rajasthan, Lakhimpur (Assam), and Tamil Nadu.

Peat

• It has less than 40% carbon content. It has low calorific value and burns like wood.

Ownership of Mineral

• The State Governments are the owners of minerals located within the boundary of the State concerned.
• The Central Government is the owner of the minerals underlying the ocean within the territorial waters or the Exclusive Economic Zone of India.

Present Status 

• Coal is among the top five commodities imported by India, the world’s largest consumer, importer and producer of the fuel.
• Indonesia accounted for nearly 60% of India’s thermal coal imports in the April-December period, while South Africa accounted for 22 percent and Russia and Australia accounting for over 5% each.
• India’s coal import declined by 17% to 137.16 million tonne (MT) in the April-November period of the current fiscal.