Says govt committed to provide free solar panels, maintenance; refutes claims of SEZs for Tamnar
Power Minister Ramkrishna Dhavalikar launching power works in Velim constituency in the presence of Velim MLA Cruz Silva and the village sarpanchas.
Photo Credits: Santosh Mirajkar
MARGAO
Saying that the demand for power is increasing at a rapid pace in Goa, Power Minister Ramkrishna Sudin Dhavalikar on Tuesday said either the vast barren tracts of agricultural fields are brought under cultivation or convert these fallow fields into solar farms.
He further reminded that the government is committed to provide free solar panels, besides their upkeep and maintenance for 10 years for households consuming 300-400 power units.
Launching power works in Velim constituency at Dramapur village in the presence of Velim MLA Cruz Silva and the village sarpanchas, the Power Minister slammed activists for linking the Tamnar power transmission line to the special economic zones (SEZs). “There’s no question of the Tamnar power project being pursued for the SEZs. These SEZs were brought and scrapped by the Congress governments. Where is the question of SEZs in Goa? These people have no other reason to oppose Tamnar and hence have now raked up the SEZs,” Dhavalikar said.
He added: “They have accused me of getting Tamnar for the SEZs. From 2014-2020 they maintained silence on this project. When these people moved the Supreme Court, their lawyer submitted that they will accept the CEC recommendations. We are executing the project as per the CEC guidelines.”
Saying the Tamnar project will be completed within one month, he lamented that unnecessary issues are being raised at the time of project completion.
The Power Minister pointed out that demand for power has been increasing rapidly in the State over the last few years, saying “the power requirements of the State will cross the 1500 megawatt in the next five years, while Tamnar’s capacity is pegged around 1200 megawatt.
“Day to day demand for power is increasing. From 650 megawatt just two years, the demand has gone up by 20 per cent. Today, Goa consumes around 850 megawatt of power,” he added.
On his proposal for solar farms on barren land, the Power Minister clarified that the first priority of the farmers is to cultivate the barren fields. “If the large tracts of fields are not brought back into cultivation, they should be at least used to set up solar farms. Both the owner and the tenants, the Comunidade bodies and the tenants, who are all gaunkars will benefit if the barren fields are converted into solar farms,” he asserted.
He added: “No benefits by keeping the fields idle and fallow. Let us go for solar farms in the barren fields, which will be able to meet the increasing demand for power.”
