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Power plants around Delhi don’t face coal shortage: Goyal
New Delhi, May 30 (IANS) Railway Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday said that the power plants around Delhi do not faces any coal shortage as the Railways and the Coal Ministry are working together with all the discoms to ensure sufficient adequate coal availability.
“The Coal Ministry and the Railways Ministry are working together with all the discoms to ensure sufficient adequate coal availability throughout the country and no one needs to worry. Any speculation on that behalf is completely baseless and unfounded,” Goyal, who is also the Coal Minister told reporters here.
He also said that the supply of coal rakes to Delhi has shown a significant improvement in last few days.
“Demand for coal was almost was very very low for Dadri all through last year. So Delhi was not consuming the amount of the power that they needed or was eligible from Dadri plant,” he said.
He said that the Dadri was working on about three rake per day supply last year because Delhi was not procuring power, but when the power demands went up, they increased their requisition to five rakes and then to seven rakes per day.
Goyal’s remarks came against the backdrop of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal raising, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Lt Governor Anil Baijal, the coal shortage in the Dadri I and II, Jhajjar and Badarpur thermal power stations, which, he said, did not have stocks “sufficient for even one-day full generation”.
Goyal said that on May 23, eight rakes of coal, on May 24 three rakes, on May 25 seven rakes, on May 26 six rakes, on May 27 eight rakes and on May 28 seven rakes have been supplied to the Dadri plant.
“So it was continuously supplying coal, despite the fact that last year they have been taking only three rakes and then we have to ramp it up to seven to eight rakes per day in the short period of time.
“We are almost giving double to Dadri than they bought last year,” he said.
Hitting out at Kejriwal, Goyal said, “The Delhi Chief Minister has never written a letter to me and has nor come to meet me. In the Power Ministry, he has said that they have adequate infrastructure.”
He also asserted that for both — coal ministry and for railways — it is not a ‘switch on and switch off’ thing that overnight you say we want more rakes and the system can gear up and supply rakes overnight.
“I hope that all the states will plan their requirement better, ensuring timely payment for the coal that they procure and booking the rates by the railways in time so that there isn’t any complaint of shortage in future,” he said.
He also said that the Badarpur power plant was never running for most of the year but suddenly a demand came up and and currently they are supplying one and half rakes a day in last one week.
He said that similarly, the Indira Gandhi plant in Jhajjar had a very small requisition both from Haryana and Delhi until recently. “And once the requisition has come, then we are supplying three rakes of coal per day and if the demands goes up, we shall provide accordingly.”
The Coal Minister also advised the Delhi government to use the tolling policy of the Coal Ministry so that it can buy the power from the discoms at lower rates as the coal for the Dadri and the Jhajjar plant has to be trasported from long distances which adds to the cost of the power.
–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.