NTPC Bongaigaon Launches Girls’ Empowerment Mission Under CSR Initiative for Holistic Development

KOKRAJHAR: NTPC, Bongaigaon, situated at Salakati in Kokrajhar district, a leading power generation unit with a capacity of 750 MW, continues to demonstrate its commitment to sustainable power generation and inclusive stakeholder engagement. The power project has focused on girls’ empowerment for holistic development by launching Girls’ Empowerment Mission (GEM) under CSR initiative which envisages their development through education and life skill.

In a special discussion with the media persons of Kokrajhar at NTPC’s new administrative building on Friday evening, the Head of Project of the NTPC, Akhilesh Singh said the NTPC- Bongaigaon power plant in Assam, located in Kokrajhar district, started its construction in May, 2008. It was developed in three stages with each stage having a unit of 250 MW capacity. He said the first unit was commissioned in June, 2015, the second in March, 2017, and the third in March, 2019. Thus, the plant became fully operational in March, 2019, achieving a total capacity of 750 MW and contributing for the development of the power sector especially in the northeastern states with Assam having the highest allocation of 57.4 pc of the total power product. He said to run the power plant of 750 MW, the NTPC-Bongaigaon required 12,000 tons of coal everyday imported from Bihar. He also said the NTPC across India had a contribution of 45.5 pc power in India which started its operation in India on November 7, 1975.

When asked about the pollution level of the NTPC-Bongaigaon, Singh said 99.9 pc of the fly ash of the project got filtered and thus there is little chance of pollution. He highlighted the NTPC’s dedication to environmental stewardship, noting that since 2006, the station has planted more than 1,93,000 trees in and around the facility. He also said there was also a mechanism of removal of sulphur dioxide to extract zipsum from it and to mitigate the pollution. Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGS) technology is being implemented in the power project and thus there is little chance for environmental hazard. He further said the NTPC had been carrying out various welfare activities for the local people through its CSR initiative and Girls’ Empowerment Mission (GEM) is being given priority for their holistic development. He further said a month-long training on self-sustain and skill development was given under the CSR initiative and in collaboration with the education department of BTC, the girls are being facilitated for education.

Singh expressed gratitude towards the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) and district administration for their continuous support in all initiatives. He also outlined various sustainable measures undertaken by the station to enhance the operational efficiency and community welfare.

In his briefing regarding the CSR initiatives, the GM of the HR department-Omkar Nath said various welfare schemes for the development of local people had been carried out since its operation. He said the NTPC-Bongaigaon through its CSR initiatives is dedicated for rural development, extending support for education, skill development, women empowerment, distribution of nutrition and development of infrastructure, rural and conventional sports and sanitation etc. He also developed the local roads and other basic infrastructures. He also said Rs. 37 crore was spent for various development schemes in Kokrajhar in the year 2022-23 and is going to implement projects of Rs. 5.1 crore in the financial year 2023-24.

The special meeting with the media persons of Kokrajhar was also attended by the senior officials including Induri S. Reddy, GM (0 &M), Asutosh Biswas, GM (Operation), Roshan Dungdung, Madhurjya S. Lahkar, Sr. Manager (Corporate Communication), Abdul Aziz, Manager, HR and Aduity Thakuri, CSR Executive.

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