MCL Releases Rs 32 Crore For Establishing COVID Hospitals In Odisha, Raises Coal Supply By 15 Per Cent

Sambalpur: Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) has taken a series of steps at an estimated cost of over Rs 32 crore in the first quarter of the current financial year to strengthen the fight against the COVID-19 surge, besides ensuring an increased quantity of coal to power plants.

MCL had spent Rs 135 crore in different COVID-19 mitigating activities in Odisha during the last financial year 2020-21 and has further extended its support to the state government in establishing COVID-19 hospitals and providing other infrastructure support.

The company is procuring 200 oxygen cylinders and concentrators to help Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, Sundergarh, and Angul districts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Anticipating a rise in power demand in the country, the company ensured more than 4.25 lakh daily supply of coal from its mines during the current fiscal, which was 15% higher than the despatch of dry fuel during the same period in the last financial year 2020-21.

In the monthly coordination meeting, P. K. Sinha, Chairman-cum-Managing Director, MCL exhorted the general managers to ensure COVID appropriate behaviour in the workplace.

“The health of our officers, staff and contractors’ workers should be given paramount importance, as coal supply to power plants is directly dependent on them,” the CMD said, asserting that at this juncture, when all the systems have been realigned to support in the fight against COVID-19, the country cannot afford dearth of essential commodities due to shortage of power.

Sinha also stressed on regular health monitoring of coal warriors, who are under treatment at various hospitals as well as at their residences. MCL has lost 18 employees to the COVID-19 pandemic, while 420 officers and staff are still under treatment for infection.

Keshav Rao, Director (Personnel), in his letter to the Odisha government, has offered to establish COVID19 vaccination centres at five healthcare facilities of the company in Angul, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda and Sundergarh districts, and sought the help of the government for vaccinating company employees, contractors’ workers, their family members and the peripheral population at the earliest.

MCL, which contributes about 20% to the total coal production in the country, has supported the state government and district authorities to set up and run COVID19 hospitals with a total 1405 bed capacity, including 189 in ICUs. Besides sanitisation of offices and other workplaces, MCL is also conducting sanitisation drives in peripheral localities, using ‘fog cannons’.