Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday, November 12 said that the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) creates hurdles in the way of generating hydel power. He said that the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu & Kashmir was rich in rivers but is unable to harness their true potential due to this Treaty. He thus highlighted the negative implications of the Treaty for the UT. He said this happened primarily due to water storage constraints that it imposes.
As a direct fallout of the barriers imposed by the Treaty, J&K pays a very heavy price during peak winter months when power generation reaches its lowest levels. This leads to load-shedding and creates hardships for its people as the demand for power is very high during this period.
CM Omar holds the charge of power portfolio and was speaking during the Conference of Power Ministers of States & UTs in New Delhi.
Union Minister for Power Manohar Lal Khattar chaired the conference. From J&K, apart from the CM, Additional Chief Secretary to CM Dheeraj Gupta, Principal Secretary Power H. Rajesh Prasad and MDs of power distribution companies participated.
Minister of State for Power Shripad Yesso Naik was also present in the Conference which was attended by Power Ministers and senior government functionaries from all over the country.
Speaking at the conference, Omar highlighted the limiting clauses in the IWT that put restrictions on J&K from realising its full hydel potential by only permitting Run-of-the-River (RoR) projects. “Hydel power is J&K’s only viable energy source. The region is compelled to rely on power imports from other States, which adversely impacts its economy,’’ he said.
“To address this, J&K would require special compensation from the Government of India (GoI), including viability gap funding and equity assistance, to harness its untapped hydro-energy potential,” he said. This much-needed support would not only help in meeting the region’s energy needs but also contribute to national clean energy goals, he added.
During the session on solar power potential and green energy, Omar dwelt upon the solar power energy being generated in Ladakh. In the days ahead, J&K too would like to procure extra energy the UT is able to generate, he said.
Omar had reached Delhi on Monday evening to participate in the Conference of Power Minister of States & UTs at India International Convention & Expo Centre in Dwarka. He stayed for the entire day and participated in all technical sessions and put forth viewpoint of J&K government during the conference.
It bears mention here that in his earlier tenure as CM of State of J&K, Omar had accompanied then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Drabshalla in Kishtwar where Ratle power project is located. The 850 MW power project was inaugurated by Singh and Sonia Gandhi, in presence of former CM Ghulam Nabi Azad and then Governor NN Vohra in May 2013. It was then announced that it would be completed in five years, before the end of year 2018.
Later events, however, derailed the Ratle power project and the private company which had undertaken to build it abandoned the project midway. The project was revived many years later and is far from complete. In fact, India and Pakistan are now locked in a battle over the project before the Neutral Expert. In June this year, Neutral Expert Michel Lino, along with Indian and Pakistani delegations, had visited the Ratle project site.
About two decades ago, when Omar’s father Farooq Abdullah was the CM of J&K, India and Pakistan had clashed over Baglihar power project. At that time, there was a survey being conducted by a French company Lehmeyer for setting up a power project at Sawalakote. However, despite claims being made by successive governments regarding the desire to set up a 1,800 MW power project at Sawalakote, nothing seems to have been done on ground.
