The Greenko-Budhil hydro-power PPA is a scam of the Uttarakhand government. In our January 2016 issue, we had informed our readers about payments made to Lanco by Greenko for Budhil project to secure a higher per unit tariff for 35 years. This long terms contract was awarded on nomination basis. In this issue we bring forth fresh findings that solidify evidences to prove that this deal was a scam.
During 2014-15, Greenko Budhil Hydro Power Pvt Ltd (which had been acquired by Greenko from Lanco) was getting Rs 2.21 per unit of tariff. But, they wanted more. So, they made a provision of $20 million for Lanco for arranging higher tariff and that’s how they have got Rs 4 per unit for 35 years. Generation of 313 million units a year means about 1,100 crore units in 35 years. One rupee extra means, Rs 1,110 crore extra payment and all of this will be extracted from users, ordinary folks of our country.
This is a story that has been built with statistical design, analyses of balance sheets and PPAs. A must read.
But we also have the cheer and sunshine stories in the power sector. And as days go by it will unfold as the brightest development story. This deals with electrification of un-electrified villages, a story of the movement from darkness to light in our rural areas.
In fulfillment of his promise for electrifying all the un-electrified villages, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given an electrification target of 200 villages per week. This means rigorous follow-ups and massive co-ordination energy with state implementation bodies; it means compression of implementation schedules and aggressive milestones. The Prime Minister gave a commitment to the nation in his I-Day address of August 15, 2015 that within 1,000 days electrification of all un-electrified villages would be accomplished.
Given the present trend of rollouts we may see a before time completion in this sphere. There are 52 weeks in a year. That means 10,400 villages are to be covered in a year. Therefore, the new deadline for electrification of all villages is March 31, 2017; much ahead of the earlier 1,000 days deadline ie May 1, 2018.
As on April 1, 2015, there were 18,452 un-electrified villages in the country, out of which 6,156 have been electrified as on March 7, 2016 and the power ministry is aiming for 7,000 villages within the year though the official target was much lower.
This alongwith the strengthening, augmentation of distribution networks and feeder separation as envisaged in the Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY) will be the quality of life infrastructure for rural India.
