Slackness persists despite availability of funds under PMDP
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Mar 23: Notwithstanding its immense benefit from all the aspects, the Power Development Department has failed to meet the deadline for underground cabling of all electrical network in five major tourist and pilgrimage destinations of the State despite availability of sufficient funds under Prime Minister’s Development Package (PMDP).
A well-designed underground cable network guarantees uninterrupted electricity distribution and provides high degree of safety. This network also serves the additional significant purpose of making the power lines less susceptible to outages during high speed winds and heavy snow, which otherwise is frequently experienced in almost all parts of Jammu and Kashmir.
Moreover, the underground cabling also decreases the operational cost over the lifetime of the cables although initially this exercise increases cost of transmission and distribution of electricity.
Keeping all these aspects in mind, the Government in the month of January last year decided to lay required focus on underground cabling in the phased manner. The announcement in this regard was made by the then Finance Minister Dr Haseeb A Drabu in the Power Budget for 2017-18 financial year, which was presented in the Legislature on January 11, 2017.
“There are many shrines and places of pilgrimage like Hazratbal, Makhdoom Saheb, Dastageer Saheb, Kheer Bhawani, Mata Vaishnodevi, Baba Reshi, Sukrala Mata, Chandi Mata Temple, Shahadra Sharief and many monasteries and mosques in Leh and Kargil where lakhs of tourists come to pay their homage. However, the existing power infrastructure in these places requires a lot of improvement”, the then Finance Minister had stated in his Power Budget speech.
He had informed the Legislature that Government has decided to take up the major tourist and pilgrimage destinations in the State like Pahalgam, Sonamarg, Gulmarg, Patnitop and Katra for underground cabling of all electrical network at 33 KV level and LT level and strengthen/augment the power infrastructure in the Phase-I.
The Legislature was further informed that an amount of Rs 25.47 crore has been sanctioned under Prime Minister’s Development Package for the purpose and work will be completed during the financial year 2017-18.
Though the financial year 2017-18 is all set to end within another one week yet the underground cabling of all electrical network at 33 KV level and LT level has not been completed in any of the five tourists and pilgrimage destinations selected under Phase-I, official sources told EXCELSIOR while disclosing that around 60% work has been completed at Pahalgam, Sonamarg and Gulmarg while as no significant progress has been made at Patnitop, the major tourist destination of Jammu region.
“As far as Katra is concerned, even work has not been started till date despite the lapse of over one year since the Budget announcement”, sources informed, adding the Union Government has only cleared underground cabling in shrine area while as clearance for Katra town has yet not been given because of inordinate delay in formulation of Detailed Project Report.
In this way, the Government has failed to meet the deadline for underground cabling in five destinations taken up under Phase-I and nobody knows when the work will be completed in all these places, they further said, adding “it is a matter of concern that Power Development Department has failed to come up to the expectations of the Government despite availability of sufficient funds under PMDP”.
“Because of delay in completion of underground cabling in five places selected under Phase-I no time-frame can be specified for start of similar work in other tourist and pilgrimage destinations which were mentioned by the then Finance Minister in the Power Budget speech”, they said.
When contacted, Commissioner/Secretary, Power Development Department Hirdesh Kumar Singh confirmed that work has not been completed in any of the five places. “As far as tourists destinations of Kashmir valley are concerned, the pace of work slowed down during the winter months. But, now the work is going to be expedited”, he said.
“Instructions have been issued for gearing up work in Patnitop also and we are shortly expecting sanction from the Union Government for underground cabling in Katra town”, he further said, adding it was due to delay in signing of agreements for Project Implementing Agency and Project Management Consultancy that work could not be started in Katra.
In response to a question, the Commissioner/Secretary PDD said, “we are hopeful of completion of work in Pahalgam, Sonamarg, Gulmarg and Patnitop by ending June this year while as underground cabling in Katra town and shrine area may take little more time”.
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