Himachal CM Sukhu Reviews 422 MW Kishau Project MoU

Shimla, Jul 14 (PTI) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Tuesday chaired a high-level meeting to review the draft MoU for the 422 MW Kishau multipurpose hydro project and issued necessary directions to the officers concerned.

He reiterated that while the state government was fully committed to the implementation of the Kishau multipurpose project, safeguarding the rights and interests of the people of Himachal would remain its foremost priority.

The MoU for the project is expected to be signed shortly between the partner states and the Centre in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Ahead of the formal signing, the Centre has circulated the draft MoU to the participating states, inviting their comments and suggestions, the chief minister said.

Addressing the meeting, he said that a consensus on the implementation of the project was reached during a recent meeting, under which Himachal would receive nearly Rs 600 crore annually as revenue without making any financial investment in the project.


Sukhu further said that the present state government rejected the earlier draft agreement and successfully secured the acceptance of Himachal's proposed terms and conditions by all stakeholders.

"This ensured the protection of the state's long-term interests while paving the way for the implementation of the project. Under the revised arrangement, all partner states would receive their legitimate share of power and water, while Himachal would also receive adequate water from the reservoir based on its requirements. The state had secured a right of 378 million cubic metres of water in the Yamuna basin," he added.

The present state government has consistently placed the interests of the state above all else and has taken decisive steps to safeguard the state's rights, he noted.

"The agreement on the Kishau multipurpose project was a landmark achievement that secures Himachal Pradesh's rightful share and long-term benefits from this strategically significant project.

"The state government had also intensified its efforts to secure Himachal's long-pending arrears of 13,066 million units of electricity from the BBMB projects, which had remained unimplemented for nearly 15 years despite a decree of the Apex Court," the chief minister said.