Three hydro power plants in Himachal Pradesh with an overall capacity of 2912 MW were today shut down due to the high level of silt in Sutlej river.
The 1500 MW Nathpa-Jhakri hydro power station, 412 MW Rampur plant of Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) and 1000 MW Karchham-Wangtoo project were shut down as the silt level in the river increased to 23,000 particles per million (ppm) against permissible limit of 4000 ppm.
The step was taken to prevent damage to the machinery.
The discharge of waterincreased to 90 cubic metre per second at Khab sangam, the confluence of Sutlej and Spiti rivers, and ppm level rose to 23,000.But it decreased to 13,000 ppm at Karchham Wangtoo dam. Power generation may be resumedtomorrow, an SJVN official said.
The plants supply electricity to 10 states in north India.
