Kolkata. Dec. 19:
The Howrah Ganatantrik Nagarik Samity – a local citizens' forum – has
filed a public interest litigation before Constitutional writ
jurisdiction of the Calcutta High Court against Coal India Ltd (CIL),
accusing the coal major of making “abnormal profits” through frequent
price rise in the last three years.
The petitioners felt that CIL was making use of the price decontrol in
2000, in the absence of a regulator and extracting higher profit by
raising prices without making adequate efforts to improve productivity
and reduce cost of operations.
“In the last three years i.e., 2008-09 and 2010-11, while dispatch of
coal remained more or less stagnant … net profit of CIL rose sharply
from Rs 2,079 crore in 2008-09 to Rs 10,867 crore in 2010-11 – a
colossal 422 per cent rise,” the petition said.
CIL posted zero production growth during the last fiscal and is
suffering from a shortfall so fat this year.
Talking on behalf of the petitioners, chartered accountant turned
social activist Mr Subhash Dutta said that the High Court will
announce the date of hearing of the petition on January 2.
Operational inefficiencies
According to the petitioners, CIL suffers from apparent operational
inefficiencies (like lack of mechanisation in underground mines, high
maintenance time, low efficiency in maintenance, material logistics,
equipment repositioning, technical bottlenecks, poor management
practices and others) leading to low productivity.
Instead of addressing such inefficiencies the company is passing on
the cost on the consumers thereby creating hurdles for national
growth.
(This article was published in the Business Line print edition dated
December 20, 2011)
The Howrah Ganatantrik Nagarik Samity – a local citizens' forum – has
filed a public interest litigation before Constitutional writ
jurisdiction of the Calcutta High Court against Coal India Ltd (CIL),
accusing the coal major of making “abnormal profits” through frequent
price rise in the last three years.
The petitioners felt that CIL was making use of the price decontrol in
2000, in the absence of a regulator and extracting higher profit by
raising prices without making adequate efforts to improve productivity
and reduce cost of operations.
“In the last three years i.e., 2008-09 and 2010-11, while dispatch of
coal remained more or less stagnant … net profit of CIL rose sharply
from Rs 2,079 crore in 2008-09 to Rs 10,867 crore in 2010-11 – a
colossal 422 per cent rise,” the petition said.
CIL posted zero production growth during the last fiscal and is
suffering from a shortfall so fat this year.
Talking on behalf of the petitioners, chartered accountant turned
social activist Mr Subhash Dutta said that the High Court will
announce the date of hearing of the petition on January 2.
Operational inefficiencies
According to the petitioners, CIL suffers from apparent operational
inefficiencies (like lack of mechanisation in underground mines, high
maintenance time, low efficiency in maintenance, material logistics,
equipment repositioning, technical bottlenecks, poor management
practices and others) leading to low productivity.
Instead of addressing such inefficiencies the company is passing on
the cost on the consumers thereby creating hurdles for national
growth.
(This article was published in the Business Line print edition dated
December 20, 2011)
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