Union Minister for Power and Coal Piyush Goyal has blamed the Jharkhand Government for stagnant power plants and discontinued exercise on rehabilitating displaced people in the State. The Minister also called for greater level of cooperation with Jharkhand for speedy growth in power and mining sector.
“The Ultra Mega Power Project at Tilaiya is pending in the want to the land. The State Government is not providing desired land for the power plant. Similar is the case with Jharia coal mine where underground fire has reached at alarming level and land is needed for resetting the displaced people,” said Goyal on Sunday. He was addressing a Press conference through video-conferencing from Delhi on the completion of 100 days in the office of the Narendra Modi Government at the Centre.
Reliance Power is building 4000 MW UMPP at Tilaiya but the work is stuck due to non-availability of land and other desired prerequisites such as water for the completion of the plant. The State is slated to get 25 per cent of the power generated from the plant at lower prices. However, the Centre and State are at loggerheads on the issue of mining as the Hemant Soren Government have been raising its side effects on settlers, impacts of the activity on the health of locals and also the royalty the State receive against the minerals excavated from here.
“If the State Government cooperates, royalty coming to it can be doubled. For that besides making the land acquisition a smoother process it has to improve law and order in the State so that more and more mining can be done,” said Goyal, putting the onus on the mineral rich State.
Notably the Chief Minister recently had blamed the Center for keeping hawk’s eye on the natural resources of the State and even went ahead signaling that one day he may also join naxalism in protest of the exploitation.
Admitting that there are problems in power and coal sectors he called upon the State for work on tandem for resolving the crisis and not indulge into politics over sectors as crucial as those. Goyal also commented on the reports about dwindling coal stocks left with the power plants and said that it was because more and more fuel had been used to meet power demand of the country which had went up on an average 21 per cent in last three months over the corresponding months of previous year.
He also put on onus of the State for checking mass level coal theft and insisted upon measures being taken up by his Ministry. “It is a serious issue. We have taken up 40-50 bigger mines on priority and planning to install CCTV, fencing and automatic barriers with three level monitoring system; at company level, at CIl and in Delhi,” said the Minister.