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| Arbitrary exploitation of J& K's water resources must end: Mufti | | | Early Times Report
Srinagar, Jan 13- Saying the arbitrary exploitation of Jammu and Kashmir’s water resources has landed state in a financial and economic mess, the Peoples Democratic Patron Mufti Mohammed Sayeed has asked the Government to review the agreements made with the NHPC to save the State from an economic disaster. "We have to stand up like other states of the country to safeguard and have control over our water and natural resources," he added.
Interacting with a delegation of people from the border town of Uri here today, Sayeed said it is an irony that despite being in possession of the richest water resources in the country, Jammu and Kashmir is reeling under severe power crisis. He said while the Central Government-owned, National Hydro Electric Power Corporation (NHPC) is generating around 1500 MWs of energy exploiting the State's water resources, J&K's own generation capacity is a meager 100 MWs. "Such an arbitrary exploitation of state’s water resources has put us at a great disadvantage financially and economically, and this glaring discrepancy has to be rectified to tide over the State's energy crisis," he said.
Instead of recognizing and rewarding J&K for its contribution towards the country's energy grid, the State is being denied even basic requirement of its energy, especially during the harsh winters, resulting in severe power cuts, he said. "Ironically, the State is made to cough up crores of rupees for the purchase of power from the Northern Grid, generated from our water resources by NHPC," he said and added that the severe power shortage facing the State has put the people to immense trouble and the Government must immediately step in to tide over the crisis.
Sayeed expressed dismay over the non-implementation of the recommendations of the Rangarajan Committee and the Prime Minister's Working Group on J&K's Economic Revival, proposing transfer of NHPC-owned Salal power project to the State. "J&K can't allow the arbitrary exploitation of its water resources to go unchecked and some compensatory mechanism has necessarily to be worked out to make good for the enormous losses being suffered by it on this count," he said and added that the State's water resources are already under tremendous strain because of the discriminatory Indus Water Treaty (IWT).
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