Unsatisfied with reply on solar power, J-K Oppn stages walkout

The Opposition today staged a walkout from Legislative Council accusing Jammu and Kashmir Science and Technology Minister Sajjad Gani Lone of providing unsatisfactory answers on solar power production and schemes in the state.
Congress member Naresh Kumar Gupta, who had raised a question related to solar power in the Upper House, contested the figures given by Lone and said the information was not correct and sought a clarification.
Replying to Gupta's questions, the Minister said under Grid Connected Rooftop Solar Energy, the state, by the end of the next financial year, aimed at achieving 54 MW, and 450 MW in the next four years.

However, he said no project for solar energy has been processed under Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode so far.
Lone said the Jammu and Kashmir Energy Development Agency (JAKEDA) has distributed 33,574 Solar Home Lighting Systems (SHLS) and 1,800 Solar Street Lighting Systems (SLLs) in the state in past three years against a target of 44,483 SHLs and 2,408 SSLs.
He said distribution of balance SHLs and SSLs is in progress.

Gupta challenged these figures and sought clarification.
The House witnessed verbal arguments between the Minister and the Congress member, following which the entire Opposition stood up and demanded a reply.

Unsatisfied by the reply, they staged a walkout.
The Minister said the procedure for distribution of SHLs is to cover all the households of unelectrified villages/ hamlets that have been cleared by the Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) for basic lighting system under RVE Programme.
The department has distributed 224 SSLs and 1,573 SHLs in Bhaderwah-Bhallessa constituency against a total target of 274 SSLs and 2,132 SHLs fixed for Doda district, he informed.
NC Legislators Bashir Ahmad Veeri and Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo raised supplementary questions to the main question.