Bhubaneswar: Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) CMD PK Sinha Wednesday emphasised on need of concerted efforts by Coal Indians for continuous supply of dry fuel to the power plants, which can ensure energy sufficiency in the country to fight Covid-19 pandemic.

Addressing at a webinar on “Anticipate, prepare and respond to crisis: Invest now in resilient Occupational Safety & Health (OHS)” organised by MCL, Sinha said, “in this hour of crisis, when entire country is facing a challenge of corona virus, we have to strategize our OHS plan in view the Covid-19 challenge to ensure continuous and uninterrupted coal supply to power plants, as electricity is the key to run the healthcare system and its supporting industry.”

Taking a cue from the oxygen shortage happened in the country due to the unprecedented surge of Covid-19 cases, Mr Sinha said, “we have to be very cautious about the occupational health of our teams to ensure that supply of coal remains uninterrupted to the power plants across the country and country doesn’t face electricity shortage in want of coal.”

While there is sufficient stock of over 20 million tonne coal available in MCL alone, the CMD pointed out that the team members engaged in coal despatch operations getting Covid-19 infection, or other health-related issues, could be the bottleneck.

Sinha, who is also the CMD of sister subsidiary Northern Coalfields Limited (NCL), stressed on employees and contractors’ workers to ensure Covid appropriate behaviour at all walks of life. “We also have spread awareness about COVID appropriate behaviour same among peripheral population so that a healthy environment remains in place to ensure optimum productivity,” he said, seeking coordinated efforts by all units of company to check the spread of coron virus.

The webinar, which was organized on the occasion of ILO’s “World Day for Safety and Health at Work-2021”, was also attended by all the functional directors, Welfare & Safety Board members, Executive Director (S&R), Coal India, general managers in areas and the heads of departments among other officers.

MCL is activity contributing with the Odisha government in fight against Covid-19 pandemic.