Consider the following statements: I. Coal sector was nationalized by the Government of India under Indira Gandhi. II. Now, coal blocks are allocated on lottery basis. III. Till recently, India imported coal to meet the shortages of domestic supply, but now India is self-sufficient in coal production. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

The correct answer is A (1 only).

• Statement I is correct. Coking coal mines were nationalised in 1971-72 and the remaining coal mines in 1973, under Indira Gandhi's government. Coal India Limited was created in 1975.
• Statement II is wrong. Coal blocks are not allocated by lottery. After the Supreme Court cancelled the 214 allocations made between 1993 and 2014, the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015 moved allocation to competitive auction, with e-auction as the main route.
• Statement III is wrong. India has not become self-sufficient. Production has risen sharply, but India still imports large volumes of coal, especially coking coal for steel, to meet demand and blending needs. The recurring 'import versus domestic supply' debate is a Mains favourite.

The core concept is the coal sector's governance: nationalisation, then the shift from discretionary allocation to transparent auctions. This links to GS3 on resource allocation, public sector reforms and energy security.

Trap: aspirants see 'nationalised' and 'auction' and assume the whole sentence chain is true. Statement III tempts those who remember the 2014-15 surplus headlines but forget the continuing import dependence.