24 hydro power projects pending due to environmental clearance: K C Venugopal

As many as 24 hydro power projects, having capacity above 25 MW, are pending for want of environmental and forest clearances, Minister of State

for Power K C Venugopal said today.

"Twenty four hydro electric projects (installed capacity above 25 MW), which have been accorded concurrence by the Central Electricity

Authority are pending for want of environmental and/or forest clearance," the Minister said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

Venugopal said the Power Ministry is also regularly reviewing the status of environment and forest clearances for power projects and are taking

up the matter with the Ministry of Environment & Forests for expeditious clearances.

The Minister said 51 hydro electric projects -- having capacity above 25 MW -- aggregating to 13,332 MW capacity have been taken up (under

execution) in different states of the country.

In a separate reply, Venugopal said the Karnataka government has submitted a Detailed Project Report (DPR) for a Rs 1,522.82 hydro power plant

in the state.

"The government of Karnataka has recently submitted DPR of Shivasamudram run-of-the-river power project in Cauvery Basin with an installed

capacity of 345 MW to the Central Electricity Authority," he noted.

The DPR is under preliminary scrutiny of Central Electricity Authority, Central Water Commission and Geological Survey of India, he added.