Uri hydropower project ready for inauguration in Kashmir

A hydropower project with a target capacity of 240 megawatt is ready for inauguration in Uri, Jammu and Kashmir.

The Uri-II Project, which is operated in supervision of National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC), was commissioned in September 2005, but the construction work received a setback during the October 2005 earthquake that hit the border town.

This will be the second project on the River Jhelum in Uri town after the Uri I project, which was completed in 1997 and is now producing 480 MW of electricity.

Project equipment head Uri power project II Saraf Kumar said: "Every where in the universe (even in the world) is preferred hydro energy. Because this is (sic...) (are) now a lot of challenges (because) of the global warming. So equipment department has been (interested the job) to do the job for the hydro. Then we select the particular type of equipment, how the dealing has to be done, how the excavation is to be done, as per the direction of the civil engineering department. So we deploy the equipment like that only, so that there should be minimum damage to the area. No pollution, nothing else so that is to be taken care of it," said Kumar.

It is a run-of-the-river project and envisages construction of a 52-meter high concrete gravity dam and an underground powerhouse connected to the dam by a tunnel.

The cost in construction of the project is estimated to be of approximately Rs.18 billion.

In charge of Uri Power Project II, Kartiken said that the construction of 4.5 kilometres long tunnel for this project was a difficult task, but hard work engineers and workers made it achievable and it was almost ready for commissioning.

"In hydro project there is (are) two types of (sic...) one is commissioning and other completion. So commissioning we are expecting, within 10 to 15 days it will be commissioned. But, after 3 to 4 months it will be completed," said Kartiken.

The power project Uri-II is almost ready for commissioning and is scheduled to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on June 26 in Baramulla.

Singh is likely to be accompanied by Congress president Sonia Gandhi during his two-day visit to Kashmir.