Top 12 major ports have reported a 19.32 per cent surge in imports of thermal coal to 28.28 million tonnes during April-June this year, latest report from Indian Ports Association (IPA) has said. The Centre-owned ports had handled 23.70 million tonnes of the thermal coal in the corresponding period of the previous financial year.

The Indian Ports Association (IPA), which maintai­ns cargo data handled by 12 ports, in its recent report has said “percentage variation from previous year” in thermal coal handling was at 19.32 per cent in the first three months of the current financial year.

As far as coking and oth­er coal is concerned, its ha­ndling recorded a jump of 6.85 per cent during the first quarter of the current financial year at 13.03 million tonnes. Thermal coal is the mainstay of India’s energy programme as 70 per cent of power generation is dependent on the dry fuel, while coking coal is used mainly for steel-making.

India is the third-largest producer of coal after Chi­na and the US and has 299 billion tonnes of resources and 123 billion tonnes of proven reserves, which may last for over 100 years.

Major ports in India together recorded a growth of 3.91 per cent and together ha­ndled 174.02 million to­n­nes of cargo during April- June against 167.48 million tonnes handled during the corresponding period of previous year.

India’s12 major ports – Kandla, Mumbai, JNPT, Ma­rmugao, New Mangalo­re, Cochin, Chennai, Enn­o­re, V O Chidambarnar, Vi­s­akhapatnam, Paradip and Kolkata (including Haldia)  – handle around 61 per cent of the country’s total cargo traffic.