Africa-Empire-bunding

of the government's investment; the average interest paid by Coal India comes to only around 7 per cent. If, on the other hand, an average rate of return-of 10 per cent on the government's total investment in Coal India, is deemed reasonable, then the effective subsidy extended by the government to the users of coal must be deemed to he annually at least Rs 45-50 crores more than even what is indicated by Coal India's losses. In other words, if Coal India's loss in 1977-78 turns out to be Rs 78 crores, as estimated by the Minister for Energy, the effective subsidy extended to coal-users through under-pricing of coal during this year alone would be in excess of Rs 125 crores.