In a significant move, the Centre had said that every hydroelectric project will donate one per cent of power towards the local area development fund and 100 units to each family affected by it.

Laying the foundation stone for a new hydropower engineering institute at Tehri, Union power minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said the Centre would provide all financial support and other facilities for the completion of rehabilitation work in time.

Shinde said the Centre had made it mandatory for all states to provide one per cent free power for the local area development fund.

Of the 13 per cent free power, the host state will get only 12 per cent. And in case the state government fails to comply with this, the Centre can take punitive action, he said.

With giant dams like Tehri creating huge rehabilitation problems in the country, Shinde tried to give a healing touch by announcing 100 units of free power every month for each project-affected family for a period of 10 years.

In this case, Shinde said, the family will also have the right to sell the unutilised power back to the state.

He said the Centre will set up more hydro engineering institutes in the country in order to provide job opportunities to the youth. He also asked the state government to go for thermal electricity as the water in various rivers was gradually receding.

The engineering college and hydro institute, the first of its kind in the country, is being built by the Tehri Hydro Development Corporation (THDC), a joint venture between the Centre and Uttar Pradesh. THDC is developing the Tehri hydel project, considered to be an engineering marvel.

The institute will run a four-year BTech course in mechanical, electric and civil engineering. Besides, it will have a special BTech course for its THDC employees.

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