BENGALURU: Union Minister for Power, Coal and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal on Thursday turned the tables on the state government over its demand for additional power from the Central grid stating that Karnataka does not have sufficient transmission lines to make use of the additional power.
“We are ready to give power to Karnataka. There is no dearth of power at the Central grid. But transmission is a constraint as Karnataka does not have sufficient transmission lines,” Goyal told reporters after chairing a review meeting with officials of the state energy department here at Vidhana Soudha.
However, he advised that instead of seeking more power from the Central grid, the state government should focus on increasing generation in its thermal power plants.
Chief minister Siddaramaiah and Energy Minister D K Shivakumar, during their recent visit to Delhi, had requested for 1500 MW of additional power from the Central grid to meet the power crisis in the state. Goyal said, not only to Karnataka, evacuation of power from north to all southern states has been a problem due to the lack of transmission corridor and lines.
“The NDA government has been focusing on completing ongoing works on transmission corridors and lines besides setting up new ones with the aim of providing round-the-clock power supply across the country by 2019. But it will take time to complete,” the minister said.However, he said that in a few months, the transmission capacity to southern states will be increased by 2,000 MW.
On operationalising the coal block in Maharashtra that is allotted to the state, Goyal said the Maharashtra government is working on it and the process is in its final stage. Tenders will be floated for coal mining, he added.
Feeder Lines for
Pumpsets: In order to ensure sustained and quality supply of power for agriculture purpose, separate feeder lines will be set up in rural areas across the country. “This work will be taken up under the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana,” he added. All 39 villages in Karnataka which have no electricity supply will be electrified in the next 9-12 months, he added.