NC to government: Come clean on leasing electricity from Ratle Power Project to Rajasthan

Srinagar, Jan 5: National Conference (NC) on Friday asked the government to clear the air on the agreement between JKSPDC and Rajasthan Urja Vikas and IT services limited as “it has created a lot of misgivings among the people of Jammu and Kashmir.”

Party’s State Spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar in a statement said that the agreement has stirred the hornet's nest as the terms and conditions on the face of it are seemingly to the disadvantage of J&K.

"Normally power purchase agreements usually last for a maximum of 20 years. However, in this case they are signing it for 40 years at a pre- negotiated price which is also unknown. There has been a feeling of betrayal amongst the people of J&K that their resources are being bartered away. The fresh agreement for off-take of electricity for a period of 40 years from the Commercial Operation by Rajasthan Urja Vikas and IT services has further added to the looming skepticism. Government should bring out a white paper on the agreement informing people about its underlying purpose and what benefits will J&K reap from it,” he said.

Imran further said that the government should have prioritised providing electricity to the domestic consumers firstly as the looming energy crises being severely felt across J&K was far from over.

“For electricity starved people of J&K, is this agreement a solution? It is a question that the government has to answer. It makes no sense that at a time when J&K is grappling with electricity crisis, the government is selling out electricity to other states,” he added.