Much hue and cry raised intermittently by the State about shortage of power is not met by the options available to it to accelerate power production by other sources, particularly green energy. This is paradoxical. J&K is one of the only two States in India that have enormous potential for generating solar power. According to the estimates of the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), Jammu and Kashmir has solar power potential of 111.05 GWp, which is the second highest in the country after Rajasthan where the potential is 142.32 GWp. While the State of Rajasthan has made considerable use of its solar potential and is well on the road to achieve its targets, the State of Jammu and Kashmir is yet to take any solid step in this direction. This is despite the fact that the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and Science and Technology Department of J&K signed a MoU in the month of March 2014 and in the month of May 2014 the State Cabinet accorded sanction to the setting up of two Ultra Mega Solar Power Projects in Ladakh region. The State Government even constituted a high-level Coordination Committee to give practical shape to the projects.
Contemporary world is attaching great importance to generating green power that has the minimum adverse impact on environment and ecology. Solar power has been categorized as the least harmful and non-pollutant source of energy. The Government of India, like all developing or developed countries, has been eager to make the maximum use of solar energy for two main purposes. One is to replenish the power need of the country and the second is to protect environment from pollution and degradation. In pursuant to this objective, the Government launched Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) aiming to establish India as global leader in solar energy. Some projects were also sanctioned under this Mission for the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Ladakh and Kargil have been identified as sites conducive for providing solar energy driven power.
With this quantum or production capability, it should have been possible to make the two mega solar power generating projects in Leh and Kargil functional by now. But the ground situation is largely disappointing. What to say of harnessing solar energy and generating power, even the Detailed Project Report for the Leh Solar City has not been formulated till date. It is strange that before the process of production of power is undertaken, there is loud talk of exporting power from Ultra Mega Project of Ladakh to other parts of the State.
It is very discouraging that the State is not prepared to respond to the avenue of power production available to it. Sadly, the State is not willing to make the best use of the gift of the nature, which is something special to it as has been stated earlier. When the project was announced, we were told that solar power would be brought to the use of civil society in various organizations like hospital, schools, offices, institutions, complexes etc. in Leh and Kargil. This has remained only a tall promise and has not been fulfilled till date. It is true that our State has large water sources to establish hydroelectric power generating units. But taking into consideration the cost of power production through hydroelectric power stations and its adverse impact on the ecology, harnessing of solar energy has been given priority over hydroelectric power generation. There is no reason why the State should not make the best use of the assistance, financial as well as technical, available from the Union Ministry. It is despairing that the State Government has failed to harness the solar energy in accordance with the plan, and the sadder thing is that solar power plants already set up at various places have not been repaired after these met with damage during the floods and are lying dysfunctional since a long time. The State Government should divert its attention to this situation and ask the Department of Science and Technology to explain indeterminate situation of solar power harnessing and distribution in the State.
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