Aaliya Ahmed
None other than a former minister for PHE, Irrigation & Flood Control, Taj Mohi-ud-Din, has described NHPC in J&K State as East India Company, fleecing the natural resources and giving peanuts in return. NHPC is back in limelight as a recent RTI application by a Delhi-based NGO NGO, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), has revealed that NHPC has earned from 2001 to 2015 Rs 194 billion from the sale of power generated from the different power projects being executed by them here.
Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has realized that if J&K needs economic freedom it has to buy back the power projects from NHPC. Taj Mohi-ud-Din has told media that by his political prowess, J&K Government has generated in the past six years Rs 36000 crores as tax from NHPC and PDC. There is a question, why to spend this money to buy back the power projects from NHPC as they have shown reluctance so far to give them back although they have given assurances from the past so many years. Why the J&K Government cannot start a new project with this Rs 36000 crores generated by water resources? He (Taj) was able to create this water resource and was trying his best to convince the former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah that if he can get back even one power project back from NHPC it would be a real economic turnaround for the J&K State.
In the Agenda of Alliance agreed by PDP and BJP before the formation of the government, it has been agreed that the Central Government will give back two power projects of NHPC to J&K State and has also agreed that the royalty being given to the State would be revised on all the seven power projects being executed by NHPC here. It would be the real test of Mehbooba Mufti to find out how serious is the Centre to help her to consolidate her position in J&K State, as if the two power projects are given back it would be a huge relief for all the three regions of J&K State. At present according to the data, J&K State has to spend Rs. 2900 crores annually to buy the power from NHPC.
Will the BJP-led government allow J&K State to think out of box to come out of the financial depression being faced here? The biggest test for the sincerity of the BJP government at the Centre would be how they will deal with the demand of J&K State to buy back at least 390 MW Dulhasti project of Kishtiwar and 480 MW Uri Hydro-electric project of Kashmir at the initial stage from NHPC.
A civil society group, Kashmir Centre for Social and Development Studies (KCSDS), has raised some vital questions about the role of NHPC and their information which they have coughed up in the RTI reply. They have called for detailed figures from NHPC of how they have billed J&K over the years for the purchase of power as they feel that J&K State has been over billed and they have given facts and figures in favour of their argument in the media.
KCSDS said that while J&K Government pays more or less 4000 crores annually for buying hydro-energy, which is partly generated from its own waters, NHPC has projected a figure of only Rs. 194 billion (Rs. 19,431 crores) in earnings from the sale of power generated by the hydel projects based in J&K, which is clearly half of the truth.
Much will depend upon the response of Union Power Ministry over the demand of J&K Government to buy back at least two power projects from NHPC and the revelations of profit in the RTI reply by NHPC has made it the hot debate in the political circles here. The coalition government will have to walk the talk on the agenda of alliance agreed by them before the formation of the government and it is to be seen how for New Delhi is ready to guarantee economic freedom of J&K State.
Author teaches at Media Education Research Centre, Kashmir University. She can be mailed at aaliyahmed@gmail.com
None other than a former minister for PHE, Irrigation & Flood Control, Taj Mohi-ud-Din, has described NHPC in J&K State as East India Company, fleecing the natural resources and giving peanuts in return. NHPC is back in limelight as a recent RTI application by a Delhi-based NGO NGO, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI), has revealed that NHPC has earned from 2001 to 2015 Rs 194 billion from the sale of power generated from the different power projects being executed by them here.
Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has realized that if J&K needs economic freedom it has to buy back the power projects from NHPC. Taj Mohi-ud-Din has told media that by his political prowess, J&K Government has generated in the past six years Rs 36000 crores as tax from NHPC and PDC. There is a question, why to spend this money to buy back the power projects from NHPC as they have shown reluctance so far to give them back although they have given assurances from the past so many years. Why the J&K Government cannot start a new project with this Rs 36000 crores generated by water resources? He (Taj) was able to create this water resource and was trying his best to convince the former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah that if he can get back even one power project back from NHPC it would be a real economic turnaround for the J&K State.
In the Agenda of Alliance agreed by PDP and BJP before the formation of the government, it has been agreed that the Central Government will give back two power projects of NHPC to J&K State and has also agreed that the royalty being given to the State would be revised on all the seven power projects being executed by NHPC here. It would be the real test of Mehbooba Mufti to find out how serious is the Centre to help her to consolidate her position in J&K State, as if the two power projects are given back it would be a huge relief for all the three regions of J&K State. At present according to the data, J&K State has to spend Rs. 2900 crores annually to buy the power from NHPC.
Will the BJP-led government allow J&K State to think out of box to come out of the financial depression being faced here? The biggest test for the sincerity of the BJP government at the Centre would be how they will deal with the demand of J&K State to buy back at least 390 MW Dulhasti project of Kishtiwar and 480 MW Uri Hydro-electric project of Kashmir at the initial stage from NHPC.
A civil society group, Kashmir Centre for Social and Development Studies (KCSDS), has raised some vital questions about the role of NHPC and their information which they have coughed up in the RTI reply. They have called for detailed figures from NHPC of how they have billed J&K over the years for the purchase of power as they feel that J&K State has been over billed and they have given facts and figures in favour of their argument in the media.
KCSDS said that while J&K Government pays more or less 4000 crores annually for buying hydro-energy, which is partly generated from its own waters, NHPC has projected a figure of only Rs. 194 billion (Rs. 19,431 crores) in earnings from the sale of power generated by the hydel projects based in J&K, which is clearly half of the truth.
Much will depend upon the response of Union Power Ministry over the demand of J&K Government to buy back at least two power projects from NHPC and the revelations of profit in the RTI reply by NHPC has made it the hot debate in the political circles here. The coalition government will have to walk the talk on the agenda of alliance agreed by them before the formation of the government and it is to be seen how for New Delhi is ready to guarantee economic freedom of J&K State.
Author teaches at Media Education Research Centre, Kashmir University. She can be mailed at aaliyahmed@gmail.com
