NE region calls for power link through Bangladesh

Power ministers of the North East will urge the Centre to work on an alternative link through neighbouring Bangladesh for an uninterrupted power supply to their region, a Tripura minister said today.
A decision on this was taken at a meeting of the North East Power Committee (NEPC), attended by the power ministers of the region, in Shillong. The meeting ended yesterday.
"The alternative line will run through the plains of Bangladesh and there will be fewer chances of interruptions," Tripura Power minister Manik Dey told PTI.
He said a resolution on this will shortly be sent to the Centre and then be examined by the Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. If found feasible, the Centre may take the matter up with the Bangladesh Government.

The present line runs through tough terrains and faces the impact of adverse weather, as a result of which power supply is sometimes disturbed," he said.
If the line within the country failed for some reason, the alternative line could work and a steady power supply maintained, he said.

Dey said at present there is a 400KV line from the Palatana power project in Tripura's Gomati district to Bongaigaon in West Bengal and another link from here to South Comilla in Bangladesh.
If a link could connect the existing lines between Bongaigaon and South Comilla, there could be an alternative supply, he said.

Dey, who is also the transport minister, said he had been informed by Railway officials that the infrastructure for launching a Rajdhani Express from Agartala was ready in Tripura.
He said the state government had on several occasions requested the Centre to launch the Rajdhani Express from Tripura and would raise the matter again.