Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Feb 11: In a testimony of slack approach towards the issues of immense importance, no significant progress has been made on taking back Salal and Uri hydroelectric projects from the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation despite the fact that approval in this regard was given by the State Cabinet two years back while accepting the recommendations of the Cabinet Sub-Committee.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that in order to give practical shape to the long pending demand of taking back Salal and Uri hydroelectric projects, State Cabinet vide Decision No.114/13/2011 dated May 26, 2011 ordered constitution of a Cabinet Sub-Committee to look into various issues arising from the terms and conditions of the entrustment of hydroelectric projects to the NHPC.
The Cabinet Sub-Committee came into being vide Government Order No.638-GAD of 2011 dated June 1, 2011 and after holding serious of meetings it submitted its report to the Government and the Cabinet accepted the recommendations in a meeting held on February 15, 2012.
While recommending return of the ownership of Salal and Uri projects to the State on depreciated cost, the Cabinet Sub-Committee recommended that State Power Development Corporation should be authorized to work out the present cost of the projects on the basis of the Internationally Accepted Norms prevailing in the industry, which can form the basis for further negotiation with the Government of India and NHPC, sources said, adding not only these two projects, the Cabinet Sub-Committee also recommended that State Government should forcefully seek transfer of Dulhasti hydroelectric project to the State by suitably compensating the NHPC.
“Despite lapse of two years, the State Power Development Corporation has failed to finalise the costs of the projects thereby indicating how much seriously the issues of much importance are taken by the Government departments”, sources regretted, adding “what to talk of JKSPDC even the Minister Incharge Power seems to have taken no serious interest in getting the recommendations of Cabinet Sub-Committee implemented.
This can be gauged from the fact that during last Budget Session, the Minister Incharge Power, in reply to the question of PDP MLA, had stated: “The J&K SPDC has taken up the matter with the concerned quarters and are in the process of finalizing the cost of the projects”. Now, the same reply has been furnished in response to a question of Hakeem Mohammad Yasin during the ongoing Budget Session.
Indicating that there would not be any progress even in the near future, the Minister Incharge Power in reply to the question of Hakeem Mohammad Yasin said, “as per the recommendations of the Cabinet Sub-Committee, a committee headed by Advocate General was constituted to go into the details of the issue and the report of the committee is awaited”.
“Given the response towards the buying back of hydroelectric projects till date, the other recommendations of the Cabinet Sub-Committee are likely to gather dust in the official files for unspecified period”, sources said while disclosing that about seven projects—- 330 Mega Watts (MW) Krishanganga, 280 MW Uri-II, 1020 MW Bursar, 120 MW Sewa-II, 1000 MW Pakal Dul, 45 MW Nimmo Bazgo and 44 MW Chutak, which were handed over to NHPC as per the MoU signed by the then Chief Minister and the then Union Power Minister in the year 2000, the Cabinet Sub-Committee had recommended that there was a provision in the MoU for transfer of these projects back to the State after paying depreciated cost and State Government should set-up institutional mechanism to enforce all the relevant clauses of the agreement.
“It is also not known whether another recommendation of the Cabinet Sub-Committee regarding monitoring at the level of Development Commissioner of Power for implementation of mutually agreed terms and conditions in respect of all these hydro electric projects, is also being taken seriously”, sources said.
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