India faces a huge energy deficit, with millions of households without power for basic lighting or cooking, and coal power is essential for the next few decades to resolve this energy crisis, to address the issue of energy access, which is just as important as the environmental problems of unclean power.

Centre for Science and Environment believes that we need to push for renewables – not because we can afford to do without coal, but because it is the urgent requirement to address the looming climate change concerns. At the same time, it is equally important is to clean up our coal power sector so that it does not destroy the environment and take human lives. This entails shutting down old and inefficient power plants, and reducing emissions from the remaining