LAND- that is the bane of all the projects that are being planned in India. Now facing the turmoil is Maharashtra. The state that already is power-starved state, may lose the 4,000MW Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP) slated to come up in Konkan if the government fails to act promptly to acquire the land.
According to sources in the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), a plot had been identified at Mungae in Malvan Taluka, Sindhudurg District, for the project several months ago.
But, till date, the Maharashtra Government – which is supposed to take the initiative in acquiring the land – has not taken the process forward.
When asked to comment on the issue, CEA’s Chairman Rakesh Nath only confirmed that they had indeed identified a location and wrote about it to the state government some months back.
The 4,000MW imported coal-based project needs a minimum land size of around 2,000 acres, and an investment of approximately Rs 16,000 to Rs 18,000 crore.
The Central Government had recently reduced land requirement for such projects 3,000 acres to 2,000 acres in many areas due to stiff local resistance, even in the state of Maharashtra.
Many places in Konkan, such as Dhopave, Girye and Dighi, were considered for the project initially, but had to be dropped as they did not conform to CEA norms. Sites are basically identified taking into account coal unloading facilities and transportation of the fuel to the site.
According to a top official in the State Energy Department, it is the job of the Revenue Ministry to acquire land for the project.
Instead, then Revenue Minister Narayan Rane showed great zeal for acquiring land for another project – Reliance’s special economic zone – despite stiff local resistance.
Source : Mumbai Mirror
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