* ADB approached for
Rs 3284.04 cr project
* 883 people died owing to electrocution during 2006-2018
STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI, Sept 28: In a bid to arrest electrocution deaths and to also boost power supply, the State Government has decided to go for a massive overhaul of the entire cable network under Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) at a cost of Rs 3284.04 crore. The fund for the project is being sought from Asian Development Bank (ADB). This was revealed by State Power (Independent) Minister Topon Kumar Gogoi on the floors of the Assam Assembly on Friday.
Replying to a query by Prafulla Kumar Mahanta (AGP) during Zero Hour, Minister Gogoi pointed out that “focus would be laid on replacing the worn-out or poor quality wires with the superior quality AV cables. At present there is 60,000 km of such wire network under APDCL. All the wooden and bamboo electricity poles would also be replaced. Already Rs 25 crore has been sanctioned for this pole replacement scheme.”
Earlier Mahanta raised the issue citing electrocution deaths in the State. He also stated that the probe reports on such deaths have blamed it entirely on the present APDCL infrastructure particularly outdated or sub-standard wires, that snap under pressure.”
Mahanta further said: “I’ve been also told that there is an unholy nexus between a section of contractors and some APDCL officers. As a result, work quality suffers. Genuinely interested contractors hardly get the contracts.” Therefore, Mahanta called for “proper monitoring of the entire gamut of APDCL activities by the government.” The alleged syndicate in APDCL must also be done away with at the earliest, Mahanta demanded.
In reply, Minister Gogoi stated that “the overhaul of the APDCL infrastructure by replacement of wires with quality cables and also of poles would definitely go a long way in arresting the incidences of electrocution in the State.”
Minister Gogoi also said that “a total of 883 people lost their lives across the State owing to electrocution during the period 2006-2018 and during the period from 2014 to 2018, 136 cases of electrocution have been registered; 65 complaints resolved while 71 cases are still on.” He also said that “28 family members of the dead have been given jobs in the APDCL.”
Stating that there is no power shortage in the State, he added that adequate power supply is presently being supplied by the National Grid. Gogoi however pointed out that the power supply mechanism gets stunted because of the poor power grids within the State. Minister Gogoi however evinced confidence that within 10 years from now, the State would be self-sufficient in the Power sector. He also said that the State Government is trying to ensure 24 hours uninterrupted power supply. The State’s daily requirement is 1665 MW of power.
Adding that “a solar power generation project will be set up at Amguri in Upper Assam and another 120 MW power generation project is coming up at Lower Kapili, Gogoi said: “A covered corridor for the safety of animals is on the cards near Kaziranga.”