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| Irony: India Today rates J&K 'best' for its performance | | Kashmir valley reeling under severe power crisis | | Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, Jan 7: Kashmir valley is reeling under severe power crisis for over last one month and there is brewing resentment among the masses against the Government for not taking interest in bettering the power supply position.
According to sources, power crisis has led to public resentment among the masses in Valley as contrary to the claims of the authorities that no power cut is enforced in metered areas, people in these localities also face over eight hour power cut. In some parts of city especially in Bemina and old city parts the power supply remained off for six hours today from 7am to 1pm. Even in some areas the night cuts are also enforced despite the fact that the cold wave has gripped the entire Valley and there is no improvement in sub zero temperature.
The decrease in temperature to minus level coupled with the long duration power cuts has led to the miseries of people in this chilly Winter said G M Mir a social activist from Bemina. Accusing the PDD authorities for the problem he said their claims of providing uninterrupted power supply in metered areas are totally hollow as eight hour power cut is also enforced in these areas.
Mir said the position is worst in rural and far-flung areas of the Valley where even the power supply remains off for days together or where the people face power cut not less than 18 to 20 hours a day.
Sources said the nonfunctioning of power projects in Valley has been one of the main causes of power crisis in Kashmir as out of 255 MWs of power in Kashmir Valley from four power projects the present generation is 74 MWs hardly and no steps are being taken by the authorities to improve the same.
Sources said that despite the reports published in this newspaper number of times regarding the snag in Upper Sindh Hydel Project Stage IInd whose one unit is not functioning for over last two years, no steps were taken to restore a portion of the canal which was washed away over two years back.
The three unit project has a total capacity of 105 MWs with one unit generating 35 MWs during normal time and as one unit is totally nonfunctional, the projects present generation out of two units is 35 MWs i.e one third of its generating capacity.
Likewise the Lower Jhelum Hydel Project in Baramula district of North Kashmir valley which has a capacity of 105 MWs from its three units is not generating more than 30 MWs of power at present. Sources said the machinery in power house developed a snag and after spending a huge amount the same has not been restored till date. Even the authorities are tight lipped about the snag and they have failed to intimate that how much more time it will take in restoration.
The two small projects Upper Sindh Hydel Project Stage Ist, Sumbal having a capacity of generating 22 MWs of power from its one unit is presently generating 5 MWs only which is one fourth of its total generation while the Ganderbal Hydel Project which too has a generating capacity of 22 MWs is at present giving four mws of power i.e less than one fifth of its generating capacity.
Sources said that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah who holds the portfolio of Power Ministry also is responsible for these lapses as he has failed to put the Department back on rails. The non performance of PDD also puts a question mark that on what basis the India Today Group gave best prize to J&K for its overall performance when the state has been rated as second among top states in corruption over a year back and this dubious distinction was achieved by J&K under the rule of Omar Abdullah. |
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