The Coal Dilemma

Coal accounts for more than 50% of India’s primary energy mix. Will coal continue to be the mainstay of our energy sector in the future? Do we have sufficient coal resources for this? Is coal the key to energy security? Can we afford to continue on a coalbased-energy future in the context of GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions and climate change? Clearly, these are questions that are important for anyone interested in India’s energy sector. The focus of the book, ‘The Coal Dilemma’, edited by S K Chand, is to address these questions. The book is a source of useful information regarding coal supply and coal demand, along with insights and perceptions of the authors’ decades of work experience in the coal sector. The authors question the assumption that India has vast reserves of coal is covered in the chapter ‘Coal supply: the fallacy of abundance’. The authors make a case for urgent adoption of the UNFC (United Nations Framework Classification) system for characterizing India’s coal reserve. The book highlights the confusion about the precise figures of extractable coal. However, it does not provide an actual estimate of reserves or quantify feasible coal extraction rates. The UNFC system is in the process of being adopted by all countries of the world. The Geological Survey of India plans to move to the UNFC scheme for all resources, including coal.1 It