By IANS,
Ranchi : The Central Coalfield Limited (CCL) suffered a loss of 1.22 million tonnes of coal production due to strikes called by various Maoist outfits in Jharkhand, an official said Friday.
“Due to 54 days strikes by various Maoist outfits in nine months of the current financial year (April-December 2009), CCL suffered loss of coal production to tune of 1.22 million tonnes,” CCL Chairman-cum- Managing Director (CMD) R.K. Saha said at a press conference.
“Chief Minister Shibu Soren has said to initiate a dialogue with Maoists and appealed to them not to call strikes. We hope the situation will change in future,” he said.
CCL has registered growth of coal production of 16.3 per cent in the nine months of current financial year, compared to the same period the previous year. “During April-December 2009, CCL produced about 30 million tonnes of coal, registering an absolute growth of 4.2 million tonnes, which is 16.3 per cent more over the corresponding period last year,” Saha said.
The estimated profit during April-December 2009 is about Rs.695 crore, about Rs.241 crore more than the Rs.454 crore in the corresponding period the previous year, he added.
In the current financial year, CCL has set target of 48.10 million tonnes coal and 46.5 million tonnes coal dispatch. In the nine months, it has already dispatched 31.76 million tonnes of coal.