(The Gist of PIB) Coal India to invest over Rs 1.22 lakh cr on 500 projects by 2023-24

(THE GIST OF PIB) Coal India to invest over Rs 1.22 lakh cr on 500 projects by 2023-24

Coal India Ltd (CIL) will invest over 1.22 lakh crore rupees on development of nearly 500 projects related to coal evacuation, infrastructure, project development, exploration and clean coal technologies in the country.
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The investment aims at making India self-reliant in terms of coal and achieve the production target of 1 billion tonnes by 2023-2024.
The national miner, CIL, will be investing around 14,200 crore rupees over the next 3 to 4 years, in two phases for its 49 First Mile Connectivity projects.
First Mile Connectivity is the transportation of coal from pitheads to dispatch points. Computer-aided loading technology of coal is being developed to replace the existing methodology of transportation via road.
Coal India has also identified 15 greenfield projects which will be operated under the Mine Developer and Operator (MDO) model. Overall nearly 34,600 crore rupees will be invested through this route.
Coal India also announced measures for relaxations and exemptions for greater participation of its stakeholders. The experience criteria has been brought down from 65 % to 50 % for mining tenders, while work experience criteria are relaxed by 50 % in turnkey contracts.