Bhubaneswar: If things go as per plan, the twin cities of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack would have advanced and disaster-resilient power supply system (undergrounding cabling) by December 2020, official sources said.
A decision to this effect was taken at a high-level review meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Asit Kumar Tripathy here, Thursday.
“Work out advanced implementation schedule for each phase of the work and resolve the ground level issues as and when they crop up through active coordination among the department of Energy, General Administration, GRIDCO and executing agency,” the Chief Secretary said.
Tripathy also directed OPTCL (Odisha Power Transmission Corporation Limited) to expedite the implementation through close and coordinated monitoring. “Target was set to complete the project by December 2020,” he said.
GRIDCO chairman Sourabh Garg said, “The entire power transmission and distribution system will be upgraded and 20 new sub stations of various capacities will be set up under the project.”
The Rs 1,600-crore project to be funded by the state government would include installation of 220-KV sub-stations at Pratappur Shasan, Balianta, Gothpatana, Godisahi, Cuttack (near Bailashi Mauza), Garg said.
Similarly, 132-KV sub-stations are coming up in Unit VIII, Mancheswar, Bargarh, Satyanagar, Nayapali and Brajabiharipur, he stated.
Besides, disaster-resilient 33-KV substations are also being installed in Unit VIII, Bargarh, Bapujinagar, Master Canteen, Satyanagar, Sahidnagar, Kharavel Nagar, Ranihat and Badambadi areas in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
OPTCL managing director Sanjeeb Singh said underground cabling is being laid in many areas of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. He said till today, around 90 per cent of the scheduled work has been completed. Target was set to complete the entire projects in different phases by December end. More than 10 lakh consumers will benefit under the new system, he added.
Additional Chief Secretary and Special Relief Commissioner PK Jena, who attended the meeting, said the system should be developed which can withstand wind speed of 300 km per hour.
Energy secretary NB Dhal said the new system would meet electrical load demand up to 1300 MW. It would ensure 24×7 quality power supply at all voltage levels because of the ring supply system. Besides, it would also reduce transmission and distribution losses, electrical accidents, operation and maintenance costs and improve the aesthetic look of the city.
A few days ago, the state government had decided to put in place disaster-resilient power infrastructure in the cyclone prone districts of the state with an investment of Rs 19,000 crore.
Four districts –Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Bhadrak and Balasore – would have disaster resilient power infrastructure with a total investment of Rs 11,000 crore in the first phase. In the second phase, five districts – Cuttack, Puri, Khurda, Ganjam and Gajapati – would have the kind of power infra at an estimated cost of Rs 8,000 crore.