New Delhi: The Centre on Saturday emphasised on the need for tapping the hydro power potential of North-East states which could contribute to more development of the region and improve socio-economic condition of people there.
Union Minister of State for Power K C Venugopal called for concerted efforts from all quarters in tapping the power potential of the North-East considering the recent problems faced in power generation due to fuel shortage in the country.
The Minister was chairing a consultative committee of Members of Parliament for Ministry of Power at Shillong besides reviewing the work undertaken by the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited (NEEPCO), a public sector undertaking of the Ministry of Power.
Maintaining that other than hydro-projects, the North Eastern region is rich in coal and gas reserves, Venugopal said, “Meghalaya has good coal reserves while Tripura and Assam are blessed with natural gas reserves which is a cleaner fuel.”
Stressing that the region can become the “Power House of India” in the years to come and can transform the socio-economic conditions of its people, the Minister said the region could contribute immensely to the development of the nation as a whole.
The Minister further stated that the power sector development in North-Eastern Region calls for a further boost and NEEPCO plays a “key role” in this endeavour. “NEEPCO has set up seven Power Stations with an installed capacity of 1130 MW contributing about 50 per cent of the total installed capacity and caters to 60 per cent of the total energy requirement of the region,” he said. (PTI)