Centre 'deliberately delaying' nod for Tamil Nadu power projects: Jayalalithaa

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa asserted that the state would be power surplus in the next six months even as she alleged that the Centre was "deliberately delaying" certain clearances for state government-initiated power projects.

Jayalalithaa while replying to member of the 14th Finance Commission Sudipto Mundle at its meeting in Chennai said that, Tamil Nadu government have initiated a number of new power projects which could have got started, could have got commissioned but clearances are deliberately being delayed by the Central Government. There were many areas where the state government has got only limited powers and clearances have to be given by the central government which were being denied, she alleged, citing as examples the Kundah and Sillahalla Power Projects.

Mundle had raised the question of power situation about the gap between demand and supply in Tamil Nadu.  For this, she assured the team that in another six months or so, Tamil Nadu will be totally free of power cuts, it will be a power surplus state. There were no power cuts in the state between July and October this year, she said. Tamil Nadu government had successfully bridged the entire gap between demand and supply in two and a half years.

She also wondered why central generating stations went out of order ever since her speech in the Assembly to restore power situation in the state. "There is a power deficit and that power deficit arises because of certain flaws which have crept in Central Generating Stations and she said that, it is very odd that all these have taken place at the same time, simultaneously."

Accusing the previous government of being the reason behind the power shortage in the state, she said, "There was a perennial power shortage in Tamil Nadu from 2007 onwards, particularly, in 2008, 2009 and 2010 and upto May 2011 when a different government was administering the state."

Referring to a project, which was commissioned during her second tenure as Chief Minister, she said a central clearance was needed just to take a transmission cable through about 14 km of forest land.

This had to be given by the Environment and Forests Ministry. She also added that, it was deliberately delayed for political reasons. Tamil Nadu government kept on reminding the Centre also wrote several times to the Prime Minister, but there was no response. She added that, eventually after approaching the Supreme Court only, the permission was accorded.