By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, August 3, 2016: Odisha is losing huge revenue due to non-revision of royalty on coal by the Centre despite persistent request by chief minister Naveen Patnaik to Prime Minister, Narendra Modi to revise the royalty on coal.

The Centre had last revised the royalty on April 2012 and fixed at 14%. In July 2014, the Centre constituted a study group to consider the revision of royalty on coal, but the group has not come out with any suggestions as yet. Still worst is the fact that the centre had now doubled the cess on coal.

The state earns around Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200 crore annually and had it been revised, the revenue would have gone up, officials said.

“It is unfortunate that the Centre has doubled the cess on coal (National Clean Energy Fund) from Rs 200 to Rs 400 per tonne while it has deprived the states of getting its due by not revising the royalty. I have raised the issue during the mines ministers’ conference held in Jaipur in May. The Centre seems to be in no mood to revise the royalty,” said steel and mines minister Prafulla Mallik.

In fact, the state government is desperately looking for revision of royalty on coal with revenue collection from mining and metal sectors going down to Rs 900 crore against the target of Rs 1,400 crore after the first quarter of the current fiscal (April-June). The state expects to generate Rs 6,700 crore from mining and metal sector n 2016-17.

Odisha also has been appealing the Centre to share 60% of the clean energy fund with coal-bearing states to take up different development activities.

Mallik accused the centre of apathy to the coal bearing states. He made it clear that while people in coal-bearing areas bear the brunt of waste, pollution and displacement, the Centre diverts the clean energy fund on western states of the country for development of renewable energy, the minister remarked.