A new lease of life for North East

In India, North East Region is recognized as an area with physical and social infrastructure deficit. Special development efforts are being made to fast track the economic growth of the region.

North East States are categorized as Special Category States and are granted central assistance on liberal terms. Establishment of North Eastern Council (NEC) in 1971, earmarking (since 1998-99) of atleast 10% of Plan Budgets of Non Exempted Central Ministries/Departments for expenditure in North East Region, creation of Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resources(NLCPR) in 1997-98 from accrual of unutilized 10% earmarked funds are some of the initiatives taken to push for the development of NER.

The decision of the Central government to approve the North Eastern Region Power System Improvement Project (NERPSIP) is in tune with its commitment for the economic development of north-eastern States. As the Intra–State Transmission and Distribution systems in the north eastern states have remained very weak; the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) developed a comprehensive scheme for the North East Region (NER) in consultation with the Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL).

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently approved the project for the six States of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura and Nagaland, for strengthening of the Intra State Transmission and Distribution System at an estimated cost of Rs 5,111.33 crore including capacity building expenditure of Rs 89 crore.
The main aim of the project is to address the lacuna in the Intra-State Transmission & Distribution Infrastructure in the power sector in north east region. A similar scheme was earlier approved for Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim at an estimated cost of Rs 4,754.42 crore.

The Scheme is to be taken up under a new Central Sector Plan Scheme of Ministry of Power and will be implemented with the assistance of World Bank loan and by the Government of India. The NERPSIP will be funded on 50:50 (World Bank: GoI) basis except the component of capacity building for Rs 89 crore, which will be fully funded by the Government of India. This project is the first phase of the three phased development, for which the World Bank will be extending loan in three tranches of US $ 500 million each.

The project implemented through PGCIL shall be progressively commissioned within 4 years. After commissioning, the project will be owned and maintained by the State Governments. Cost Estimates of Project: The cost estimate of the project has been worked out as Rs 5,111.33 crore at February 2014 price level.

At present, all the six Northeastern states are connected to transmission network at 132 KV and below. The 33 KV system is the backbone of power distribution system in these States. In order to reduce the gap between the requirement and availability of the intra-state transmission and distribution system, it is necessary to provide 132 KV/220 KV connectivity to all the six NER States for proper voltage management and lower distribution losses. Similarly, the distribution system in all six NER States which mainly relies on 33 KV network would be strengthened substantially.

This project is a major step towards meeting the national objective of "Power to All" through enhancement in access of consumers to grid connected power supply through improving its availability and reliability, thereby facilitating inclusive growth.