CENTER WILL HELP ARUNACHAL PRADESH IN HARNESSING POWER

GOVERNMENT PLANS TO PROVIDE SOLAR POWER SUPPLY FOR 80,000 HOUSEHOLDS IN ARUNACHAL
Mr. Piyush Goel, the Union Minister of State for Power and New & Renewal Energy assured the Government of Arunachal Pradesh that the central government would support the state in reaching its maximum potential when it comes to harnessing power. He assured that the state will receive grants from the Center to develop multiple small power projects and erection of transmission lines. Center is going to release Rs. 14.83 crores to Arunachal Pradesh for this purpose. Mr. Goel further disclosed that his Ministry has plans to encourage the use of solar power and use it to provide power to 80,000 households in the State. All this was discussedwith the Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Mr. Kalikho Pul which took place in Delhi.Mr. Pul disclosed the power related plans of the State Government and stated that they have already identified 89 projects in the border areas. These projects will be used to provide power to those areas in the state which are so far un-electrified. The total capacity of these projects is going to be 37.28 MW and the expected cost is Rs. 725.47 crores. A big plus point about these projects is going to be that all power will be harnessed in an eco-friendly manner. He urged the Center to provide clearance for all pendingfunds due to which many of the proposed hydro power projects have not been completed yet. This is proving to be a big hindrance in meeting the power requirements of the State. The Central Government had agreed to fund 92 power projects and a total amount of Rs.438.23 crores was allotted for them. Out of these projects, 76 have been completed already and another 15 projects are in advance stages of completion. Once the remaining amount of Rs. 14.85 crores is released by the Center, Arunachal Pradesh Government will be able to begin work on the remaining projects