Coal in the BJP States 2

Coal in the BJP States

JHARKHAND

Chief Minister Arjun Munda has also come under the vitriolic attacks of the Congress,
and that too, for doing his job. Under his leadership, the state of Jharkhand tirelessly
campaigned for its interests by regularly communicating with the Centre. Considering
that more that 1/3 of India’s coal reserves lies in Jharkhand, he rightly ensured that
Jharkhand comes as far as exploitation of coal is concerned.
The government of Jharkhand did write to the Centre about coal allocation- after all,
the coal being allocated is within Jharkhand. Letters were sent to the PM asking for coal
allocation to state enterprises that work for the direct benefit of the people, such as
Jharkhand Mining Development Corporation and the State Electricity Board. But more
often that not, the Centre was unhelpful.
Shri Munda and his government have also done much to attract investment to the
economically backward state and entered into MOUs with companies. Attempts by the
state to inform the Centre about these MOUs are now being blatantly misconstrued as
pressure. Unlike certain Congress MPs, Shri Munda never wrote to the centre for allocation
of coal to friends and cronies.