Of the 92 major power projects reviewed by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) for their fuel position, 54 are facing “acute coal shortage”, which is resulting in inadequate power supply/blackouts in various parts of the country, crippling of industrial output and impact on households.

Blame this not only on the stagnation in India’s coal output and a widening demand-supply gap for the fuel, but also on the Centre’s standing linkage committees (SLCs).