Transfer of hydel projects to state still a distant dream

Editor

As the PDP-BJP regime will complete two years of government on March 1 this year, one of the main objectives of the Agenda of Alliance — transfer of hydropower projects from the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation — still remains a distant dream.
The Jammu and Kashmir Government is still pursuing the matter with New Delhi. The last and only formal meeting with the Union Power Minister over the issue was held on March 16, 2015, giving an indication that the coalition has put the issue on the back-burner.
Most of the major hydroelectric power projects in the state, except the Baglihar, are owned by the NHPC due to which the state doesn’t have its own electricity despite having a capacity to generate more than 20,000 MW. It has to buy electricity from the Northern Grid to meet its requirement.
In a written reply to a question raised by National Conference MLA from Nagrota Devender Singh Rana whether the state government had formally approached the Union Government to transfer the projects, Minister for Power Nirmal Singh, who is also the Deputy Chief Minister, informed the House today, “The transfer of power projects is an important part of the developmental agenda of the coalition government. As mentioned by the Finance Minister in the Power Budget speech for 2015-16, the government will actively pursue the transfer of hydel projects from the NHPC and the Budget provided funds for meeting the operation and maintenance cost of such power projects to be transferred from the NHPC.”
“On March 16, 2015, the Deputy Chief Minister and the Finance Minister met the Union Power Minister and impressed upon the need for transfer of the Dul Hasti and Uri hydropower projects from the NHPC. Subsequently, the Deputy CM has raised the issue in various power ministers’ conferences,” he said. “The state government is actively pursuing the transfer of power projects,” he added.

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