MP CM seeks Centre's help to start power plants

New Delhi, May 28 (UNI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan today sought the Union Government's intervention in making operational the Birsinghpur and Amarkantak power plants.

Due to the delay by the BHEL, the Birsinghpur plant with a power generation capacity of 600 MW and Amarkantak plant with a capacity of 210 MW have not yet become operational, the Chief Minister said in his speech read out by state Power Minister Kailash Vijayavargiya at the Chief Ministers' Conference convened by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here.

It is because of this that power generating companies have incurred a loss of about Rs 1868 crores, the Chief Minister said, and requested the Union Government to issue strict instructions to the BHEL to do the needful.

The Chief Minister also requested the Prime Minister to intervene to remove the roadblocks in starting the ultra mega power plant with a capacity of 4000 MW to be set up by the Union Government in Sasan in Sindhi district of Madhya Pradesh. Inspite of the fact that the State Government had provided all possible help during the last five months, the project had not taken off, he said.

Referring to the franchisee arrangement in electricity generation, he said this was yielding encouraging results. Under the system, where losses in power generation had come down the income from revenue per unit had become twice as much. He demanded that the service tax on the franchisee organisation should be abolished keeping in mind the consumers and the progress in the power sector.

Mr Chavan called for incentive of Rs 250 crores to be given by the Union Government to the MP Electricity Board due to the losses incurred in power distribution.

He also demanded financial assistance for 32 out of the total 48 districts for the Rural Electrification Programme waiving the restriction of villages having a population of less than 300.

UNI