As West Asia war threatens gas supply, remembering a gas grid India never built

Topic: As West Asia War Threatens Gas Supply, Remembering a Gas Grid India Never Built Date: 23 March 2026 | Source Article: The Hindu (International Edition)

1. At a Glance

• Coal gasification converts coal (including low-grade variants) into syngas (synthetic gas), usable as fuel, for fertilizer production, hydrogen generation, and chemicals — reducing dependence on imported LNG, crude oil, and natural gas.
• India's National Coal Gasification Mission (target: 100 million tonnes by 2030) has deep historical roots: a 1955 proposal by scientist Syed Husain Zaheer for a cross-country national gas grid was ignored for nearly two decades before being vindicated by the 1973 Oil Shock. [1][2]
• UPSC relevance: intersects GS-III (energy security, infrastructure, science & technology), GS-II (India's strategic vulnerabilities), and Essay Paper (national vision vs. policy inertia).
• The ongoing West Asia conflict (2025-26) — disrupting Persian Gulf LPG/gas supplies — is a live case study of India's persisting energy import dependency.

2. Why in the News

• 2025-26 West Asia War (triggered by Israel-US strikes on Iran) has disrupted Persian Gulf gas and LPG supplies to India, causing domestic LPG availability stress. [4]
• The crisis is explicitly compared to the 1973 OPEC Oil Embargo (triggered by US support for Israel in the Yom Kippur War), when OPEC nations cut production and slashed exports.
• The Union Cabinet approved a ₹37,500 crore Scheme for Promotion of Surface Coal/Lignite Gasification Projects (2025-26), the largest-ever financial outlay for coal gasification — directly responding to import-dependency vulnerabilities. [2]
• India's first-ever pilot project for Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) was initiated in Jharkhand by the Ministry of Coal. [3]
• Coal Mine Development Agreements with Underground Coal Gasification provisions were signed — described by PIB as a "historic first." [5]

3. Background & Evolution

Predecessor initiatives: Bombay High exploration (post-1973); LPG expansion schemes; City Gas Distribution (CGD) network expansion under PNGRB.

4. Core Static Facts

Definitions & Terminology

• Coal Gasification: Thermochemical conversion of coal into syngas (H₂ + CO mixture), which can be processed into SNG, methanol, ammonia, urea, and hydrogen.
• Surface Coal Gasification (SCG): Above-ground reactor-based gasification.
• Underground Coal Gasification (UCG): In-situ combustion of unmineable coal seams underground.
• Non-caking fuels: Lignite, shale coal, bituminous coal — Zaheer's preferred feedstock for gas grid.
• Syngas downstream products: LNG substitute, urea, ammonia, methanol, blue hydrogen.

Implementing Ministry / Bodies

• Ministry of Coal — nodal ministry for National Coal Gasification Mission.
• Coal India Limited (CIL) — key PSU; JV partner with BHEL and GAIL.
• CSIR-IICT, Hyderabad — historically linked (Zaheer's institution); involved in R&D.
• BHEL — technology partner (CIL-BHEL JV, Lakhanpur, Odisha).
• GAIL — gas distribution partner (CIL-GAIL JV, Sonepur Bazari, WB).

Key Numbers | Parameter | Figure | |-----------|--------| | Mission target | 100 MT coal gasification by 2030 | | Original incentive outlay | ₹8,500 crore | | New Cabinet-approved outlay (2025-26) | ₹37,500 crore | | New scheme's gasification target | ~75 MT coal/lignite | | CIL-BHEL JV cost | ₹11,782 crore (Lakhanpur, Odisha) | | CIL-GAIL JV cost | ₹13,052.8 crore (Sonepur Bazari, WB) | | India's crude oil import dependency | ~83% | | Natural gas import dependency | ~50% | | Methanol/fertilizer import dependency | >90% |

Historical Persons

• Syed Husain Zaheer: Director, RRLH Hyderabad (1955); later Director-General, CSIR; proposed national gas grid to PM Nehru in 1955.

5. Multi-Dimensional Analysis

Economic

• India imports ~83% crude oil, ~50% natural gas, and >90% methanol/fertilizers — coal gasification can partially substitute all three, saving foreign exchange. [1]
• The ₹37,500 crore scheme is expected to reduce LNG imports, cut urea/ammonia import bills, and create downstream industrial value chains. [2]
• Coal gasification produces syngas for fertilizers — critical for agricultural input cost stability and food security.
• UCG enables extraction of energy value from unmineable/stranded coal deposits — expanding India's effective coal asset base without additional mining.

Geopolitical / Strategic

• India's LPG/natural gas supply chains are concentrated in the Persian Gulf — the West Asia war (2025-26) exposed this as a single-point vulnerability. [4]
• The 1973 OPEC shock and the current crisis are structurally identical: geopolitical conflict → supply disruption → price spike → India's import-dependent energy basket buckles.
• A domestic gas grid (had Zaheer's 1955 vision been implemented) would have provided strategic insulation against such external shocks.
• India's energy security doctrine now explicitly links coal gasification to reducing import dependence as a national security imperative. [1]

Scientific / Technological

• Syngas from coal can be used to produce: SNG (substitute natural gas), hydrogen (blue H₂), methanol, ammonia — enabling multi-fuel flexibility.
• India's high-ash coal (typically 35-45% ash content) is a technical challenge for standard gasifiers — NITI Aayog has specifically published a technology review on gasification for Indian high-ash content coal. [6]
• UCG avoids surface mining risks; applicable to deep, unmineable coal seams.
• CIL-GAIL JV targets 1.83 MMSMD synthetic natural gas — a direct pipeline-substitute for imported LNG.

Environmental

• Coal gasification is cleaner than direct coal combustion — CO₂ can be captured from syngas stream (enabling CCS/blue hydrogen).
• However, UCG carries risks of groundwater contamination and subsurface land subsidence.
• Syngas-based blue hydrogen pathway aligns with India's National Green Hydrogen Mission targets.
• Large-scale coal gasification still locks in fossil fuel infrastructure — tension with India's net-zero by 2070 commitment.

Administrative / Historical

• Zaheer's 1955 proposal was a case of visionary science ignored by policy — only vindicated after a 18-year lag when the 1973 oil shock forced the pivot.
• The gas grid India never built represents a classic instance of policy inertia and silo thinking between scientific institutions and planning bodies.
• Current Mission suffers similar risks: PIB notes multiple JVs and pilots, but end-to-end pipeline grid infrastructure — the key missing link in 1955 — remains underdeveloped relative to the gasification production side.

6. Recent Developments (last 12-18 months)

• 2025-26: West Asia war (Israel-US strikes on Iran) disrupts Persian Gulf energy supplies; Indian domestic LPG availability stressed. [4]
• Feb 2026 (approx.): Union Cabinet approves ₹37,500 crore Scheme for Promotion of Surface Coal/Lignite Gasification Projects — largest-ever outlay; targets ~75 MT. [2]
• 2025-26: India's first-ever Coal Mine Development Agreements with UCG provisions signed — described as "historic first" by PIB. [5]
• 2024-25: CIL-BHEL JV (Lakhanpur, Odisha) and CIL-GAIL JV (Sonepur Bazari, WB) advanced as flagship gasification projects. [1]
• 2023-24: India's first UCG pilot project in Jharkhand initiated by Ministry of Coal. [3]
• Oct 2025: NITI Aayog publishes technology assessment on Coal Gasification Technology for Indian High-Ash Content Coal. [6]
• 2024: Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy describes coal gasification as "key to India's energy security and industrial growth." [7]

7. Prelims Hooks

1. Syed Husain Zaheer proposed a cross-country national gas grid to PM Nehru in 1955 — the plan was not implemented.
2. Zaheer was Director of Regional Research Laboratory Hyderabad (RRLH) — now CSIR-IICT (Indian Institute of Chemical Technology).
3. He later served as Director-General of CSIR.
4. The 1973 OPEC Oil Embargo was triggered by US support for Israel in the Yom Kippur War.
5. India's National Coal Gasification Mission target: 100 million tonnes of coal gasification by 2030.
6. Cabinet approved ₹37,500 crore outlay for surface coal/lignite gasification projects (2025-26). [2]
7. India's first UCG pilot project was launched in Jharkhand by the Ministry of Coal. [3]
8. CIL-GAIL JV at Sonepur Bazari (WB) targets 1.83 MMSMD of synthetic natural gas. [1]
9. CIL-BHEL JV at Lakhanpur, Odisha targets production of ammonium nitrate (0.66 MMTPA). [1]
10. India imports ~83% of its crude oil, ~50% of natural gas, and >90% of methanol and fertilizers. [1]
11. The original National Coal Gasification Mission incentive framework was ₹8,500 crore. [1]
12. Nodal ministry for coal gasification: Ministry of Coal (not Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas).
13. NITI Aayog published a technology assessment specifically on gasification of Indian high-ash coal (2025). [6]
14. Zaheer's feedstock proposal (1955): non-caking fuels — shale coal, lignite, bituminous coal — for fuel gas production.
15. India's first-ever Coal Mine Development Agreements with UCG provisions were signed in 2025-26. [5]

8. Mains Relevance

GS Paper Mapping:

Plausible Mains Question Stems:

1. "India's energy security vulnerabilities, exposed repeatedly by West Asian geopolitical crises, trace their roots to policy decisions of the early post-independence era. Discuss with reference to coal gasification and the gas grid that was never built."

2. "Critically examine the National Coal Gasification Mission (2021) as a strategic response to India's fossil fuel import dependency. What structural and technological challenges must be addressed for it to succeed?"

3. "The 1973 Oil Shock and the 2025-26 West Asia crisis reveal a recurring pattern in India's energy policy. What lessons should inform India's long-term energy security architecture?"

9. Related Topics to Study Next

10. Common Errors / Trap Areas

1. Wrong Ministry: Coal gasification is under Ministry of Coal, NOT Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas or Ministry of New & Renewable Energy. This trips many aspirants who associate it with gas/oil or "green" energy.

2. Zaheer's Institution Confusion: RRLH Hyderabad became CSIR-IICT (Indian Institute of Chemical Technology) — NOT NIO (National Institute of Oceanography) or CECRI. Zaheer later became DG-CSIR, not DG-DRDO.

3. Year Confusion (1955 vs. 1973): The gas grid proposal is 1955 (Zaheer → Nehru); coal gasification's revival as policy interest is post-1973 oil shock. Both years are individually examinable.

4. 100 MT Target Scope: The target is 100 million tonnes of coal GASIFIED by 2030 — NOT electricity generation MW, NOT hydrogen production targets. The new ₹37,500 crore scheme targets an additional ~75 MT (surface/lignite), separate from earlier 8,500 crore framework.

5. UCG vs. Surface Gasification Conflation: Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) = in-situ, for unmineable seams (pilot: Jharkhand). Surface Coal Gasification = above-ground reactor-based (JVs in Odisha, WB). The Cabinet scheme (₹37,500 cr) covers surface gasification — not UCG.