The union government, in a tough measure against non performing companies, has cancelled coal linkages of 25 captive power plants (CPPs) in order to weed out non serious coal companies from the system and to ensure adequate coal supply to plants running short of fuel. These captive power plants have combined capacity of nearly
1,300 mw annually but they failed to meet their production capacity on time.

Union Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal, while confirming the development, said, "We are reviewing the status of development of blocks allotted to companies for captive use. We will cancel the blocks wherever the need be. You will hear something in this regard in the next 10 days or so.''

He said that government may allow full entry of private sector in coal mining starting an open bidding regime to ensure adequate coal supply for country's coal plants. The ministry also issued show cause notice to Tata Sponge, Monnet Ispat, the Adhunik Group, electricity boards of Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand, power corporations of Maharashtra and Haryana Chhattisgarh, Assam and Meghalaya for failing to meet targets.

The issue came into limelight when five Left MPs, during UPA government's first tenure, had urged the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to look into the matter as some influential people and business houses were trying to delay the projects for their vested interests.