North Eastern Region Power System Improvement Project

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs recently approved the revised cost estimate of the North Eastern Region Power System Improvement Project. The revised estimated cost is Rs 6,700 crores.

About the Scheme

The north eastern region power system improvement project (NERPSIP) is a central scheme under the Ministry of Power. It was started in 2014. It is implemented by Powergrid, a central public sector undertaking under the power ministry. It is funded by the World Bank and Government of India on a 50:50 basis. The capacity building component is completely funded by the Indian government. The objective of the project is the economic development of the northeast by strengthening the intra-state transmission and distribution infrastructure.

Pasighat Proclamation on Power

The roots of the NERPSIP scheme lies with the Pasighat Proclamation on Power. It was released during the first Sectoral Summit of North Eastern Council at Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh in 2007. According to the recommendations made at summit, a sub-group was constituted. The group mainly consisted of members from the Central Electricity Authority. The group recommended a comprehensive scheme to strengthen the transmission and distribution of power in the North Eastern States. Accordingly, NERPSIP was sanctioned for six states.

The six states covered under the scheme are Tripura, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland and Mizoram.

Another separate scheme was sanctioned for Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh under the summit. It was “Comprehensive Scheme for Strengthening of Transmission and Distribution in Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim”.

North Eastern Council

The Council was established under the North Eastern Council Act, 1971. The council is responsible for the social and economic development of the North Eastern region of India. The members of the council are the Governors, chief ministers of the eight states. The eight states are Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Mizoram, Sikkim.

Month: Current Affairs - December, 2020