Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on May 16, said the government would introduce commercial mining in the coal sector.
The announcement was a part of the fourth set of measures under the Rs 20 lakh crore COVID-19 relief package.
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The measure will remove the government's monopoly in the coal industry, Sitharaman said.
Nearly 50 new coal blocks for commercial mining will be offered immediately, with no elegibility conditions except for an upfront payment with a ceiling.
Also read: Coal sector gets a fresh lease of life. India has to do more
Rs 50,000 crore will be spent for evacuation infrastructure, the government added in the statement.
The government had in January 2020 permitted non-coal companies to conduct coal mining.
The government has set a target of 1.5 billion tonnes coal production by FY24, of which Coal India has been asked to produce 1 billion tonne.
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