Photo Courtesy: India Today Group
Guwahati: Assam wants to become the Northeast's green energy hub. Finance Minister Jayanta Mallabaruah announced a Rs 77,353 crore roadmap today. The state aims to boost power generation from 450 MW to 8,457 MW. They need self-sufficiency. Officials hope to match the hydropower progress seen in neighboring Arunachal Pradesh.
The plan leans heavily on pumped storage. The government approved four projects totaling 4,900 MW. These will pull in Rs 27,100 crore in private cash. Hydro expansion is also moving fast. The 120 MW Lower Kopili Hydroelectric Project is now in trial commissioning. It currently pushes 55 MW into the grid. Full operation starts later this month.
New thermal power is also on the books. Officials proposed a 3,200 MW plant in Bilasipara at a cost of Rs 4,000 crore. Another eleven hydropower projects, adding 137.2 MW, are currently in planning. These carry a price tag of Rs 2,617 crore.
Infrastructure must grow too. Assam will lay 15,000 circuit kilometres of lines over five years. Plans include 120 new substations and 20,000 high-voltage transformers. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma says the massive injection of funds will drive the state forward. He stated, "The investment of over Rs 77,000 crore would generate more than 8,000 MW of electricity and power Assam's development in the years ahead."
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