While India’s energy needs are rising rapidly, the supply is still heavily dependent on coal which accounted for nearly 79% of the total in 2023-2024, the Energy Statistics 2025 released on Saturday said. Coal has underpinned the expansion of electricity generation and industry, and remains the largest single fuel in the energy mix, the report said. (AP) Despite a boom in renewable-energy installations, coal production grew by 11.71% in 2023-24, reaching 997.83 million tonnes, up from 893.19 million tonne in the previous year, the report, released by the ministry of statistics and programme implementation, showed. “In the context of rapidly growing economies, especially in densely populated regions like Asia, there is an urgent need to shift towards cleaner energy sources,” the report said. “Coal has underpinned the expansion of electricity generation and industry, and remains the largest single fuel in the energy mix.” According to official projections, India is likely to account for a quarter of the global energy demand in the next two decades. To be sure, the share of the energy sector in …