Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], March 20 (ANI): Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday said that his government was seeking legal opinion to take over power projects operating in the state without set timelines.

The Chief Minister was presiding over the International Conference on Dam Safety here. The conference would continue till March 22, 2025.

He said that the river waters were the main source of power generation in the state, however, during the initial years, there was no timeline set for licences issued to the power generation companies, which is normally 35 to 40 years and because of this, the state suffered substantive losses.

'There are still many such power projects wherein no timelines have been fixed to hand over the projects to the state government. The government was fighting a legal battle to take back these projects and legal opinion was being sought in this regard,' Sukhu said.

The Chief Minister said that if the need arises, all such projects in which the interest of the state government has been completely ignored would be taken over by the government in the near future.

The Chief Minister said that due to the immense hydel power potential, Himachal was becoming the focal point in the hydel renewable energy sector globally.

Sukhu said that the people of Himachal Pradesh have immensely contributed to paving the way for setting up many hydel power projects in the National interest and for the development of the Nation and many were displaced during the construction of Bhakra Dam and Pong Dam, who were still fighting for their settlement rights. He assured that the present state government would take every possible measure to address the grievances of such families affected due to the construction of these Dams.

The Chief Minister said that it was very unfortunate that the people of Himachal Pradesh had to approach the Apex Court to get their share in the electricity sector.

He said that on the one hand where ample water in the reservoirs leads to prosperity, during the rainy seasons the dam waters, when released, bring hardship to the people living downstream, adding that there was a need to give added attention to such issues besides ensuring the security of dams.

'Since the people of the state have already borne the brunt of nature's fury in 2023, we have to prepare ourselves much in advance to mitigate such calamities,' he said.

'As the incidents of cloudbursts have increased recently in Himachal Pradesh, the Chief Minister directed the dam authorities to alert the people well in time living downstream of the catchment areas of the projects before releasing the excess water.

Sukhu emphasised the need for quality in the construction of dams as well as its regular maintenance to ensure their life and safety. He said that climate change and a few other reasons were posing new challenges for dam safety in the Himalayan region, so a multi-dimensional approach to mitigate these challenges needs to be adopted.

He said that the government has implemented the Dam Safety Act for the surveillance, inspection, operation and maintenance of dams for which the Dam Safety Committee has also been constituted. This committee would look after the maintenance and safety of all the dams in the state. (ANI)