Northeast states have richest hydropower potential in country: Union Power Minister

GUWAHATI: Manohar Lal, Union Minister of Power and Housing and Urban Affairs, welcomed all the dignitaries and indicated the joint efforts needed to achieve the goals of Viksit Bharat by 2047. He also highlighted the significant contribution of the North-Eastern States to the same. The central government is making all necessary efforts to ensure the overall progress of the states in the north-eastern region. The Central Government has taken up work so as to improve connectivity and infrastructure in the region. He further mentioned that the North-Eastern States have the richest hydropower potential in the country, which needs to be harnessed so as to achieve the ambitious national target of 500 GW of renewable energy by 2030. He mentioned the initiatives taken by the Central Government to make hybrid-electric projects and PSPs viable, like provisioning for Hydro Purchase Obligation (HPO), taking measures for tariff rationalisation, waiving ISTS charges, etc. He also stated that the state, in which the project gets established, also benefits in the form of free power at 12% and 1% LADF, in addition to other benefits. He also emphasised the need for the need for the States to resolve the challenges in respect of land acquisition, forest clearances, and other hurdles faced by the implementing agencies. While reviewing the progress of transmission projects, he emphasised the need for the states to build up their capacities so as to become self-sufficient in the execution of such projects.

The conference of the Power Ministers' of the North Eastern Region (NER) States of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura was held today in Guwahati. Manohar Lal, Union Minister of Power and Housing & Urban Affairs, chaired the conference.

The Union Power Ministers' of the States, Additional Secretary (Power), Government of India, along with senior officials from the States and CPSEs, also attended the conference. During the conference, detailed deliberations were held with respect to the overall scenario of the power sector in the states of the North-Eastern Region, with a special focus on various aspects of hydropower generation, transmission, and distribution in the North-Eastern States. The progress of the states in various schemes of the Government of India, namely the North-Eastern Region Power System Improvement Project (NERPSIP) for strengthening intra-state transmission as well as distribution systems in the North-Eastern States, the Comprehensive Scheme for Strengthening of Transmission and Distribution Systems in the State of Sikkim, and the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS), were also reviewed in the meeting.

Additionally, deliberations were also held in respect of the power sector reforms, the measures to be taken to promote ease of living for electricity consumers, and the resource adequacy plan to be finalised in order to meet future demand. The representatives from the state governments also provided their input and suggestions during the course of the deliberations.

Currently, 37 hydropower projects (HEPs) with a capacity of 15 GW are under construction, and projects for adding another 50 GW are under development. The goal is to add another 11.9 GW of hydropower capacity in the next five years. The development of pumped storage projects (PSP) is also of paramount importance for meeting the energy requirements. Under the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS), distribution infrastructure and smart metering works, with a total outlay of Rs 13,147 crores, have been sanctioned for these states. The progress of these projects needs to be expedited. The financial viability of the DISCOMs also plays a crucial role in the overall transformation of the sector. The government of India is also committed to providing electricity access to un-electrified habitations and households in the country.

In this regard, Powergrid was advised to provide the necessary handholding support and assistance.

During the deliberations, the State Power Ministers' also highlighted various issues on which the Hon'ble Union Power Minister assured full cooperation so as to ensure the expeditious development of the power sector in the region. Later in the evening, the Union Minister of Power and Housing & Urban Affairs, Manohar Lal Khattar, also chaired a review meeting of missions and schemes of the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs in the North Eastern states. The State Urban Development Minister, Ashok Singhal, was also present at the meeting. (PIB)

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