Chouhan renews demand for NTPC-BHEL plant in MP

Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan is hopeful of getting an NTPC-BHEL joint venture in his state. He has written a letter to the prime minister in this regard and has once again demanded the proposed NTPC-BHEL power equipment plant in Bhopal to be set up.

“BHEL’s existing unit has a surplus state government land of 2,243 acres and the project will boost employment opportunities in Madhya Pradesh,” chief minister’s official spokesperson told Business Standard.

However, the central government has reportedly allotted the Rs 6,000-crore power projects equipment manufacturing unit of the NTPC-BHEL joint venture to Andhra Pradesh. Earlier in February 2008, the state chief minister had written a letter to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and had asked for the project to be alloted to Madhya Pradesh.

NTPC and BHEL jointed hands last year to form a joint venture company NTPC-BHEL Power Projects, to set up the greenfield unit that will manufacture equipment for thermal, hydro, gas and power plants.

At present, the Bhopal unit of BHEL makes turbines, transformers and other heavy engineering power equipment at Bhopal. It also has plans to set up a nuclear power plant manufacturing block in the premises of the existing plant.

“The existing unit and the BHEL township is facing a severe water crisis, the state capital does not have sufficient water for its own population, how would they provide for the proposed plant,” a source in BHEL said. The state chief minister though, has made it clear in his letter that the state may allot land area anywhere in the state if the company so demands.

Andhra Pradesh government has already identified a land area of more than 700 acres for the project which will reportedly provide employment to 6,000 people directly and 20,000 indirectly.

The state government has a long pending demand of the surplus land of 2,243 acres at the BHEL unit. The former chief minister Babulal Gaur too, had aggressively pursued the matter with the Centre to no avail.