THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Power Minister K Krishnankutty said here on Thursday that his aim is to make the state power surplus. Briefing reporters here after evaluating the performance of the power sector over the past one year, the minister praised the Kerala State Electricity Board employees for their commendable role in ensuring the state did not have power cuts when the country was reeling under the coal crisis. He also said the Athirappilly power project is not under consideration for the time being.
Earlier, he held talks with the KSEB Officers’ Association. Rajesh Kumar Singh, principal secretary, power department, has been entrusted with holding another round of talks with the KSEBOA before giving a report to the High Court on invoking the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) against the protesters, he said.
Announcing that the board earned a profit of Rs 1,466 crore from power production during 2021-22, Krishnankutty urged the employees to focus on production. “Projects are being stalled citing environmental concerns,” he said. Reacting to reports of power tariff hike, the minister said if the state receives 400MW power per day through hydroelectric projects, the consumers will not feel the pressure. Krishnankutty also attempted to downplay the protest by KSEBOA. “There will be minor issues in families. The protest in KSEB is similar to that. It is not an issue of who won or lost,” he said.