Punjab’s ambitious hydro electric project, Ranjit Sagar Dam, achieved a rare milestone by generating 2,859 million units of power during last two years and earning record revenue of Rs950 crore besides emerging as a major source of green power for the State.
“The Ranjit Sagar Dam is the biggest hydro electric project of the region. Besides generating precious power for the state, it had been augmenting the irrigation network of the granary of the country, Punjab,” said an official spokesperson of Irrigation Department.He said that this path breaking initiative of SAD-BJP Government has achieved a major milestone by generating 19807 million units green power for the state earning a record revenue Rs6,000 crore in last 14 years. He said that if we go by the project cost, the project has already earned 56 percent of its project cost.
The spokesperson said that this multipurpose project, besides direct benefit to the state, has been able to generate indirect revenue of Rs550 crore (from 2012 to 2014) to the state by controlling floods in the districts of Pathankot, Gurdaspur and Amritsar and increasing power production of Upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC) project.
Describing the project as a game changer for border district and Majha region of Punjab, he added that it is singularly because of this project that farmers of this region were able to diversify in the profitable area of Pisciculture and the economy of region has seen a major uplift. The project has emerged as a major indirect employment generator for the state, besides providing direct employment.