CPM demands rollback of Ratle power agreement, seeks IWT compensation

Srinagar, January 17

While opposing the recent power agreement between Jammu and Kashmir and Rajasthan, CPI(M) leader MY Tarigami on Wednesday sought a rollback of the decision and also demanded compensation for J&K on behalf of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) between India and Pakistan.

“The power purchase agreement between Ratle Hydro Electric Power Corporation Ltd and J&K Power Development Corporation with Rajasthan Urja Vikas and IT Services Ltd for off-take of power for 40 years is not only an unjust decision but also against the development of J&K economy,” Tarigami said.

In a letter to Union Minister for Power, Raj Kumar Singh, Tarigami said the decision is unjust and hampers the development of Jammu and Kashmir. He said Jammu and Kashmir administration entered into a 40-year power off-take agreement at a time when the region is experiencing a power distribution supply of six to eight hours in the winter and 12-14 hours in summer.

The scarcity of power affects the economy year-round, impacting the MSME sector, household industries and handicrafts, said Tarigami, adding that selling power outside the state is not viable, considering the existing power shortage.

He said the power shortage in J&K is due to the constraints imposed by the Indus Water Treaty (IWT). “IWT remains a bottleneck and does not allow J&K to harness the potential of water resources to the optimum because it has to use only run of the river water resources. Therefore, the constraint is on storage capacity. It cannot go beyond 13 lakh acres of irrigation capacity building,” the CPM leader said.

“The Union government must compensate Jammu and Kashmir on perennial basis 400 MWs of power out of the central pool to compensate the loss of overall power harnessing potential due to IWT constraint since 1960,” the former legislator said.