The Himachal Pradesh Cabinet approved a proposal to cancel the construction of 172 small hydro projects of below 5 MW capacity. The proposal, launched on Wednesday, halted the projects where construction work had been on hold for an extended period.

The state is now planning to re-advertise these projects that fall under the Himachal Pradesh Energy Development Agency, according to a senior official as reported by the national media.

“It has been decided to apply a uniform free power royalty of 12%, along with an additional 1% for the Local Area Development Fund, for all hydro projects up to 5 MW that will be allotted in the future,” said an official.

CM’s Decision

This decision was taken in a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, where the Cabinet also approved the cancellation of 22 hydroelectric projects above 5 MW, previously allotted by the Directorate of Energy, where implementation agreements had not yet been signed.

On the same matter, a Department of Energy official told national media that, “We had issued show-cause notices to the firms which were given the contract to establish 22 hydroelectric projects above 5 MW. Some of them have submitted their replies. As per our initial assessment, some of the firms failed to obtain permission and NOCs from various departments. However, the firms are yet to enter into instruments of agreement with the state government.”