Hydel projects to yield Himachal Rs 1,000 cr

By virtue of being home to several Himalayan rivers, Himachal Pradesh could earn over Rs 1,000 crore as tax every year once the entire hydro potential was tapped, said Yogendra Prasad, chairman of the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC), at Surangani in the Chamba district, about 400 km from Shimla. Of the total generation, the state will have 12 per cent free.

Himachal has a quarter of the country's power potential of some 25,000 MW, but only a small proportion of this has been tapped so far, while work on several projects is on, many with private equity.

The state government has a debt of Rs 13,000 crore, part of which can be cleared with the revenue it earns from the projects.

Four of the five tributaries of the Indus""the Sutlej, Beas, Ravi, and Chenab""flow through the state. Besides, several rivers also flow into the Yamuna basin. All have good power potential.

"We are keen to undertake all the proposed hydro-electric projects in Himachal Pradesh," he said.

Prasad had also headed the Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd, which recently completed the 1500-MW Nathpa Jhakri project in the Shimla district. It is the country's largest hydro-power project.

Currently, NHPC, along with the National Thermal Power Corporation, Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited, and several private companies in the mini and micro sector, are engaged in building hydro-power projects in the state.