*Meeting energy needs of remote areas remain dream
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Oct 9: Contrary to the tall claims of the successive Governments about laying required focus on tapping abundant power potential in Jammu and Kashmir, the State Government doesn’t know the exact potential for development of micro/mini hydel projects despite the fact that it had established exclusive agency in this regard over two and half decades ago.
Official sources told EXCELSIOR that in order to promote and implement projects aimed at meeting the energy requirements of remote and un-electrified areas of the State by harnessing new and renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, biomass and small hydro electric projects, the State Government had in the year 1989 set up Jammu and Kashmir Energy Development Agency (JAKEDA) under the control of Department of Science and Technology.
However, despite lapse of over two and half decades the Energy Development Agency has failed to achieve the objectives behind its establishment on both solar power and hydro power fronts, sources said, adding the failure on solar power front can be gauged from the fact that despite substantial investment the solar power has failed to light up large number of those Government institutions where such plants were established.
As far as potential for development of micro/mini hydel projects is concerned, sources said, “what to talk of making much headway in this regard to meet the energy requirement of remote and un-electrified areas of State, the Jammu and Kashmir Energy Development Agencies doesn’t know the exact potential for such projects”, adding “even the fate of those micro/mini hydel projects which were taken up for construction through private players has been hanging in balance during the past quite long time”.
“On one side the Energy Development Agencies admits that micro/mini hydel power has tremendous potential for generation of electricity in the State mainly because the topography of Jammu and Kashmir provides extensive network of canals and streams but on the other side it is groping in dark about accurate available potential”, they further said, adding “this indicates that till date successive Governments only remained busy in boasting of having huge potential for power generation and actually no assessment was ever conducted at least for micro/mini hydel power projects”.
Sources further said, “the lack of exact information about potential for construction of hydro power projects up to 25 Mega Watts can be gauged from the fact that Energy Development Agency has recently started process of engaging a competent consulting agency so that potential is assessed with the latest available technology and approach within a specified time-frame”.
“The agency to be engaged by the JAKEDA would carry out detailed exercise which include all topographical survey, geological studies, hydrological studies, soil testing with emphasis on minimum dependable discharge as well as optimal exploitation of hydro power potential up to 25 Mega Watts”, sources said, adding “this clearly indicates that all these vital steps have never been initiated during the past over two and half decades”.
The non-serious approach towards assessing potential for micro/mini projects till date is notwithstanding the fact that such projects can supplement energy generation as short/medium term measures in a State like Jammu and Kashmir, which has extensive network of streams and canals. Moreover, such projects can also help in providing employment avenues to the people of remote and far-off areas in addition to all round development of such parts of the State.
In response to a question, sources said that such projects can be best alternative to meet the energy requirements of those areas where extension of grid system is un-economical or un-viable.
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