In order to fast track mining activities ensuring sufficient flow of coal to power plants, the Budget injected three times hike in coal mines, the concerned minister, Piyush Goyal said, elaborating that the power ministry as a whole secured 33% hike to Rs. 13,881cr. He added that the allocations have been hiked to Rs. 500-cr for safety in mines. The revised allocation for safety spends in financial year 2017 stood at Rs. 350.50-cr and there is a major thrust on flagship rural electrification scheme Deen Dayal Upadhayaya Gram Jyoti Yojana. The allocation for this scheme has been increased by 44% i.e., from Rs. 3,350-cr to Rs. 4,814cr, while the contribution to urban areas scheme Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) has been increased by 29% from Rs. 4,524-cr to Rs. 5,821cr. As a matter of fact, the government also said that it will auction four coal mines for commercial mining in 2017-18 and it will offer 23 coal mines for the unregulated sector, two will be allocated in the coming financial year and four of the 23 mines to be auctioned will be earmarked for commercial mining operations.
