The Bihar government accepted the long-pending demand of the people of Kahalgaon under Bhagalpur district but not before the loss of about half a dozen lives in January. On Sunday it accepted the proposal of the Union government to allow the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) at Kahalgaon to directly distribute electricity to the areas within a radius of 10-12 kms.
The decision follows the Union Minister of State for Energy Jairam Ramesh's two hour-long meeting with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar at the latter's residence with the proposal from the NTPC.
The chief minister said the state government agreed to the NTPC's proposal in the interest of the people of Kahalgaon. Official sources said the NTPC proposed to cover areas within a radius of 10-12 kms from the plant in the wake of the recent unrest in Kahalgaon.
It needs to be mentioned that several people lost their lives in police firing at Kahalgaon on January 19 last when demonstrators seeking uninterrupted power supply from the NTPC staged sit-in at the gate of the plant. The following day police carried crack down on the local people killing one and injuring another. The police action sparked off protests by opposition parties in Bihar which demanded resignation of chief minister.
Meanwhile, Jairam Ramesh directed the authorities to start preparations for supplying power to Kahalgaon without delay. He also said that the construction of the NTPC plant at Barh was moving at a slow pace due to some problems of the Russian company, which was assigned the job. However, it would soon be accelerated.
Source: www.bihartimes.com April-28-2008
