Adil Lateef
Srinagar, Feb 16: Since last one year, the 4.5 Mega Watt (MW) capacity Pahalgam mini-hydel power project run by Jammu and Kashmir Power Development Corporation (JKPDC) is awaiting overhaul and as a result is completely defunct, thereby affecting power supply to local areas at a time when Valley is facing power crises.
Official sources said that the project is defunct since last year as it was running on manual mode. “It needed overhauling and for the want of overhauling it is lying defunct since a year now,” they said. Two units of Pahalgam mini-hydel project were commissioned in year 2005 by the then Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and later it was upgraded in year 2013 by adding another unit.
Sources said third unit was functioning but now it has also gone defunct because of canal crash and freezing of water due to sub-zero temperature. Sources said that due to dysfunction of the mini-hydel power project the power supply to local areas has been hit. “We manage power supply in intervals by releasing it to local receiving station,” they said.
While admitting that the power project is awaiting overhaul since past year, Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE), Altaf Ahmad, told Excelsior that as a result of turmoil the tendering for the same got delayed. “As you know there was turmoil in the Valley and because of that the tendering got delayed as it is hectic process,” he said.
The AEE said that the tendering process has now almost finalized and the overhauling would be completed by April. “The major reason for not overhauling the project was delay in tendering. You have to understand that the tendering is done online and it is a very hectic process. But we have now sorted it and hopefully the project would be made functional again in April this year now,” he added.
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