Bidar: The Janata Dal (Secular) will lead a delegation to former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda and the State Government demanding shifting of the site of the proposed thermal power plant from Jewargi in Gulbarga district to Hallikhed (B) in Bidar.

President of the party's district unit Baburao Gudage told presspersons Jewargi (Chief Minister N. Dharam Singh's constituency) is not the right place to set up a thermal power plant. They said it lacks basic infrastructure. Water supply is not adequate and there is no railway. The project will not be viable there, according to them. It is in the interest of the State to establish the power plant in Bidar. The plant was originally planned for Hallikhed (B). Preliminary viability studies have proved that it has infrastructure for the project. It is connected by rail. Coal, the primary raw material, can be transported from Singareli in Andhra Pradesh. Hallikhed (B) has abundant water sources.

T&D losses

The transmission and distribution (T&D) losses of power will be reduced if the plant is set up there. Power to Bidar and surrounding areas is supplied from the Sharavati power generating station in Shimoga. A power plant in Bidar will not only mean increased power production but also reduced T&D losses, he added.

Jewargi is only 70 km from Shakti Nagar in Raichur, and there is no need to set up a separate power plant close to it. Hallikhed B is over 350 km away and setting up a power project in the region is justified, he said.

"The Cabinet cleared the proposal to set up the power plant in Jewargi two weeks ago. We want the Government to reconsider the project site," Mr. Gudage said.

The Janata Dal (S) will urge the Government to take up a project to pump 10 tmcft of Krishna water from the Narayanpur Dam in Gulbarga district to the Karanja Dam in Bidar. This will ease drinking water shortage in Bidar. The project will cost about Rs. 100 crores.

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