E-Kantipur

KATHMANDU, JAN 23 -

Politically motivated community user groups are found indulging in malpractices while constructing the government subsidised micro hydropower projects in remote districts.

A probe team formed to study troubled micro hydro projects concluded that the politically motivated community user groups have been promoting irregularity.

“Many groups are politically motivated and their influence was seen in the selection process of companies to provide subsidy,” said Bharat Poudel, senior engineer of Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC), who recently returned inspecting construction sites in Rukum.

The Poudel-led team comprising AEPC account chief Laxman Gautam, Tara Shrestha of Rural Energy and Rural Livelihood, Nirjana Chanda of Rural Energy Fund and Rana Bahadur Thapa were on the week-long project inspection. According to the investigators, construction of the micro hydro projects are in limbo.

Against the target set by AEPC, a donor funded semi-government body tasked to construct 75 micro hydro projects in Rukum, only three community user groups have formally started construction work but only to get the short end of the stick   later. AEPC has warned that it will block funds to the remaining projects unless the local consumers act in a transparent way and rise above their petty interests. “We have asked them to follow the due process while selecting companies and act transparently,” said Poudel.

Among the projects running in Rukum, AEPC has released Rs 7,556,250, out of the total subsidy of Rs 25,428,573, to the 61-kW Kyangsikhola micro hydro project and a similar amount of subsidy to Lukum micro project.

“We have heard that the community groups received budget from the government to construct micro hydro projects. But there is no progress. We are concerned that the projects bit the dust due to their negligence,” said Ajay Magar, a local of Rukum.

Rural Energy and Rural Livelihood (RERL) has warned of withdrawing its funds if the government failed to utilise money allocated for the micro hydro projects within 2012. “RERL has already informed us that it will not wait beyond 2012,” said Poudel.

According to Magar, politicians, consumers groups, contractors and companies are engaged in blame game to serve their interests.

Like Rukum, progress remains unsatisfactory in the remaining 16 districts. “We have been receiving similar complaints regarding the misuse of funds and formation of community consumer groups by political leaders,” said Ananda Raj Maskey, component manager of Rural Energy Fund (REF). 

In a bid to power the districts where the national grid is not expected to reach in near future, AEPC with the support from various development partners launched mini and micro hydro projects in 2009 in 13 remotest districts—Humla, Jumla, Kalikot, Dolpa, Mugu, Rolpa, Rukum, Jajarkot, Bajhang, Bajura, Achham, Dailekh, Darchula and in remotest VDCs identified by the government.

Development partners have been providing subsidy and technical assistance to develop mini and micro hydro projects with installed capacity ranging from 10 kW to 500 kW. The subsidy covers around 60 percent of the total project costs and the remaining to be borne by the communities themselves.

Posted on: 2012-01-23 08:33

Post Your Comment

Please note that all the fields marked * are mandatory.
* Full Name
* Address
* Email Address
* Comment
* Captcha	Get another CAPTCHA code
Note:	Comments containing abusive words or slander shall not be published.