Minister for Electricity M.M. Mani on Tuesday told the Assembly that the government had proposed a new subterranean powerhouse in Idukki dam to augment electricity generation to meet escalated night time demand in the State.
Capping the discussions on demands for grants for his ministry in the 2019-20 Budget, Mr. Mani opposed the allegation that poor dam management had resulted in the catastrophic floods in August last.
He requested the Speaker to expunge the "unfounded" accusations raised by P.T. Thomas and said the High Court had neither accepted nor reject the amicus curiae’s questionable report about the floods the Opposition had relied so much on to cast the government in poor light. Mr. Mani said most dams did not have shutters. The Opposition allegation that the government threw open all barriers without prior warning was absurd.
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He denied that the government had contracted Reliance to set up solar farms in the State. There was no corruption or opaqueness in the acquisition of land for the modernisation of the Pallivasal project.
Mr. Mani said the government hoped to cover water reservoirs with floating solar panels to augment solar power production to make up for the growing electricity deficit in Kerala. It hoped to generate 1,000 megawatt of power from alternative and renewable energy sources. The State's thrust was on solar energy. He said thermal power plants and small hydel projects were no more feasible.
The KSEB was burdened with cumbersome and almost irrecoverable debt. Public utilities and State-run industries owed the KSEB more than ₹7,000 crores in dues. The government had not imposed load-shedding or power cuts on the public despite severe financial constraints. Mr. Mani agreed with V.D. Satheesan of the Congress that more use of LEDs would help save power.
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