Uttarakhand's BJP govt got PM to inaugurate half-complete power project, alleges opposition parties

Opposition parties in Uttarakhand have alleged the state government got a half-complete power project inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently, a claim rejected by the ruling BJP.

During his visit to the state on October 12, the prime minister had laid the foundation stone of and inaugurated 23 projects worth about Rs 4,200 crore, which also included the 42-kilometer-long Pithoragarh-Lohaghat-Champawat transmission line.

Main opposition Congress alleged that due to non-construction of a power substation, only 33 KV power is being transmitted through the line that should carry 132 KV. ”The state government got the half-completed project inaugurated by the prime minister. We demand the government conduct an investigation and punish the officials responsible for this,” state Congress vice president Suryakant Dhasmana said.

He claimed the construction of the said sub-station is in the stage of the tendering process. ”We have to understand that until this sub-station is built, the huge 132 KV power cannot be transmitted through this line.” Aam Aadmi Party state coordinator Jot Singh Bisht said this incident has tarnished the image of Uttarakhand. ”A project kept incomplete for a long time leads to cost escalation and increases the possibility of corruption.” When contacted, officials of the Power Transmission Corporation of Uttarakhand Limited (PTCUL) said the prime minister inaugurated only the transmission line, the work of which has been completed.

They said the construction of the sub-station is also underway and it will be completed soon.

The ruling BJP rejected the claims by opposition parties as an attempt to mislead the public, and asked the Congress to apologise. State BJP media in-charge Manveer Singh Chauhan said the Congress is spreading a false propaganda.

In a press release issued here, Chauhan said the whole project is to be completed in 2025 but after the transmission line was set up, the state government is utilising 25 per cent of its capacity for the convenience of the common people. This addressed the issue of power tripping and low voltage, helping thousands of people in the inaccessible hilly areas, he said. He said that PTCUL officials have also clarified that the work of electrical substation and transmission line is different and the prime minister has inaugurated only the completed transmission line.