GUWAHATI:
Two units of 250 MW each of 2000 MW Lower Subansiri Hydro Electric Project (LSHEP) will be commissioned in June, this year.
This was informed by the officials of National Hydro Power Corporation (NHPC) to Arunachal Pradesh deputy chief minister Chowna Mein who visited the project site at Gerakamukh in the Lower Subansiri district along Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border on March 11.
“The officials of NHPC informed the deputy chief minister that the projects are expected to be completed by May, this year, and 2 units of 250 MW each will be commissioned by June of this year. The remaining 6 units with a total capacity of 2000 MW of power project will be completed by June 2024,” an official statement of Mein said here.
Mein was briefed by NHPC executive directors (Subansiri), Vipin Gupta and executive director (Itanagar) RK Chaudhary.
With the commissioning of the Subansiri project, Arunachal Pradesh will contribute significantly to India’s target of achieving a 5 trillion-dollar economy.
The Subansiri Lower HE Project, located near North Lakhimpur on the border of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, is the biggest hydroelectric project undertaken in the country.
Mein was accompanied by MLA cum adviser to power minister Balo Raja, MLAs Tarin Dakpe, Taniya Soki, and Rode Bui, power secretary Ajay Kumar Bisht and chief engineer of DHPD (Department of Hydro Power Development), RK Joshi.
He visited various sites of the project to take stock of the progress made.
Mein appreciated the progress of the work and lauded the project-executing team. The project, which was taken over by National Hydro Power Corporation (NHPC) in 2000, is nearly completed, with 86% of the overall progress made to date.
After the visit, Mein held a meeting with the NHPC officials at their office complex and discussed the issues of Subansiri Middle (Kamala) and Subansiri Upper (Menga) power projects, allotted to NHPC by the Central government in presence of local representatives and PRI leaders.
He urged them to expedite the execution of the project immediately and said that the matters on Subansiri Middle HEP will be taken up in the next cabinet meeting, after which an MoA (memorandum of agreement) will be signed between Arunachal Pradesh government and NHPC as per the cabinet decision.
Standard operating Procedures (SOP) for Subansiri Upper HEP should also be finalised soon, he said.
Mein also asked the NHPC officials to execute their work with professionalism and to achieve the target as per specification. He urged them to ensure that no further delays in the project completion is made as it causes cost escalation and more losses to the State exchequer, amounting to the loss of revenue. The completion of the projects will also open up ample scope for the establishment of an industrial zone in the area, Mein added.
He also lauded the public for their cooperation in the smooth implementation of the project and asked the NHPC officials to win the confidence of the people through the efficiency of their work.
Mein also assured the NHPC officials of the full support from the Arunachal Pradesh government and cooperation in the implementation of these projects.