Allow Himalayan states to approve, implement hydro projects of less than 25 MW: Dhami urges Centre

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday pitched for making specific policies for Himalayan states and also urged the Centre to allow the states to approve and implement hydropower projects of less than 25 MW to help meet energy "shortage". Speaking at the Governing Council meeting of the Niti Aayog here, he also urged the Centre to implement the proposed 24 per cent capital subsidy for the construction of small hydropower projects in Himalayan states as well as North-Eastern states, a press communique issued by the Uttarakhand government said.

"The chief minister said that in any developed nation, its urban areas make a special contribution as a growth engine. It becomes difficult to provide basic facilities in these cities due to excessive population," it said.

"To solve this problem, 'counter magnet areas' will have to be developed between different cities of the country," Dhami was quoted as saying.


Dhami also stressed on the need to pay "special attention" to artificial intelligence and quantum readiness for the concept of "Viksit Bharat (developed India)" by 2047 for research, development and innovation.

"The chief minister said that in the eighth meeting of the NITI Aayog last year, some proposals related to the development of Himalayan states were put forward, (and) he requested to make specific policies in the context of Himalayan states on those proposals," the statement said.

Noting that a "serious crisis" of drinking water has been seen in many cities of the country, Dhami also underscored the need to work on water conservation along with increasing the ground water level to solve the problem.

"For this, Spring and River Rejuvenation Authority has been formed in Uttarakhand, which is working on the project of water conservation and reviving water sources and connecting snow-based rivers with rain-based rivers," the chief minister said, requesting for special financial assistance and technical support from the central government for this.

Dhami said for a "Viksit Bharat", there is a need to promote entrepreneurship in rural areas, for which cluster based incubation centres and growth centres will prove to be important.

Two rural incubation centres and 110 growth centres have been established in Uttarakhand as a pilot project, he said and urged the Centre to provide technical and financial support to set up incubation centres in the state.

"To meet the energy shortage, the chief minister requested that states be allowed to approve and implement hydropower projects of less than 25 MW capacity and to implement the proposed 24 per cent capital subsidy for the construction of small hydropower projects in the Himalayan states along with the North-Eastern states," the Uttarakhand government statement said.

Dhami also requested to include lift irrigation in the guidelines of the 'PM Krishi Sinchai Yojana', it said.

At the meeting, Dhami said Uttarakhand is continuously working towards fulfilling the goal of "Viksit Bharat" set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He said Uttarakhand is a very sensitive state in terms of disaster and thanked the prime minister for making "special financial provision" for the state in this year's Union Budget keeping this in view.

"The chief minister said that under the guidance of the prime minister, the state has passed the Uniform Civil Code Bill in Uttarakhand," the statement said.