Other States - Rajasthan   

Long-pending power plants to be speeded up

JAIPUR: The Rajasthan Government is going ahead with plans for construction of dams to facilitate establishment of four power projects on the Chambal river downstream of the Kota barrage. The projects, which include the Rahu Ghat power plant, have been pending for more than a decade.

Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who heads the State Board for Wildlife, has given clearance to the projects, which would however require approval of the National Board for Wildlife for survey. Inter-State issues involved in the projects were thrashed out as far back as August 2005 during a meeting of the Chief Ministers of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

Energy Secretary Yaduvendra Mathur said the State was presently trying to speed up power projects to create an additional 1500 MW generation capacity. The Rahu Ghat project, held up since 1994, was being taken up after negotiations with the neighbouring Madhya Pradesh. Many projects including the Dholpur thermal power plant, delayed for 20 years due to pending clearances, were nearing completion at present, he claimed.

The agreement reached between Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh in 2005 envisaged construction of power plants at Gajjipura, Jetpura and Barsala, besides Rahu Ghat. The Union Ministry for Environment and Wildlife had on September 6, 2005, given permission for a survey on the proposal for constructing the dams. However, the work could not progress as the Centre introduced a new clause that such projects would require clearance from the respective Wildlife Boards of the States and the Centre.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Five Bangladeshis arrested
Marwari seths shifting focus to vocational training
Long-pending power plants to be speeded up

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu