Lok Satta Party (LSP) on Sunday urged the state government to evolve and implement a rational power policy, so that the wider public interest and legitimate interests of all stakeholders who are affected by the setting up of power plants, including local farmers, displaced families and residents, are adequately protected.
In a memorandum submitted to Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy at the camp office on Sunday, LSP President Jayaprakash Narayan pointed out that the need of the hour was a
rational power policy for Andhra Pradesh, and a relook at the land allocation for thermal power plants.
Pointing out to the recent events in Kakarapalli village of Santabommali Mandal in Srikakulam district, which have resulted in tragic loss of innocent lives, Dr. Narayan said that the incident could have been avoided.
The LSP chief said that the unfortunate events are a virtual replay of the tragedy that had taken place in Sompeta last year, and added that those events expose the severe shortcomings in the government's power sector policy.
"This crisis is an outcome of the state government opting to establish thermal power plants (TPPs) across the state indiscriminately. Its decisions are taken unilaterally, without taking legitimate concerns into consideration, and are imposed on the people against their consent," Dr. Narayan stated in his memorandum.
The memorandum continued, "The answer to this does not lie in blindly opposing the setting up of every project and industry, including power plants. Lok Satta Party recognizes the pressing need to promote economic development, generate gainful employment, and to strengthen vital public services and basic infrastructure, and thereby lift people out of poverty. All these would be impossible to achieve without augmenting the power supply situation in the state. Already, there are farmers, rural and urban domestic consumers, and industries suffering from several power shortages."
The LSP also demanded that the government immediately act upon the suggestions that the former is offering for a win-win situation.
These solutions included the release of a white paper by independent experts on the precise power needs of AP.
The party said that credible studies have estimated that the state needs an additional 15,000-16,000 MWs of power to meet its all-round developmental requirements.
This is in contrast to the government's plans to set up power plants generating a total of around 46,000 MWs. Effectively, the state government has offered these merchant TPPs key benefits - direct access to sea, cheap land and other scarce natural resources. The TPPs are allowed to maximize their revenues by selling their power at profitable rates outside the state.
On the other hand, thousands of local farmers, ordinary families and residents are left to bear the brunt of indiscriminate land acquisition, forced displacement, inadequate compensation, and serious environmental and industrial hazards.
The party argued that the the government must immediately constitute an independent expert committee, composed of credible and renowned domain experts, to go into the core issues of precise estimation of power requirement of the state, type of power plants best suited to meet our needs and site suitability for these plants.
The memorandum stressed on the need to ensure that the state's needs and public interest take precedence over indiscriminate profit-making by a few private parties.
The LSP also stated that permits granted to merchant TPPs that do not serve the needs of the state should be reviewed and cancelled, if necessary. Preference should be given only to those private players who offer to meet our state's power needs, and whose power is available at rates offered by public power plants.
It also demanded that an independent, statutory authority for site suitability, land allocation and acquisition, by amending Land Acquisition Act provisions.
To support this demand, the party said that while setting up power plants, it is critical that only suitable sites are considered, and appropriate extent of land from such sites is allotted and acquired for power plants.
To enable this, a thorough and scientific site-suitability analysis (SSA), using the latest available remotely-sensed terrestrial data, has to be performed at the conceptual stage itself.
Simultaneously, a coherent and robust policy framework has to be generated to ensure that only waste and barren lands are identified, allotted, and acquired for power plants in conformation with all statutory and regulatory norms, and fertile lands and double-cropped farms should not be allotted or acquired under any circumstances.
Land, only to the extent required, should be provided to a TPP, in order to ensure that power projects do not degenerate into real estate ventures.
An independent, quasi-judicial authority has to be set up to address land requirements, allotment, acquisition and compensation while setting up of power plants. The Land Acquisition Act should be suitably amended. This schema can also be extended to the setting up of other industries and SEZs in the state.
Apart from this, the party demanded a generous compensation for the people who are affected by the projects. The authorities must ensure that generous monetary compensation is given to all displaced farmers on a priority basis, at or more than the prevailing market rates of the property acquired.
Similarly, generous monetary compensation must also be ensured to all project-affected families and to people who are displaced, or lose livelihoods due to the project. The identification of affected individuals and granting of compensation should be done in a timely, transparent and consultative manner to ensure that all genuine/eligible individuals are given due compensation.
In addition to monetary compensation, the land in excess to the TPP's requirement should be acquired and fully developed, and then be handed over to the displaced farmers and adversely-affected families.
Displaced people and youth, in the project-affected area, should be given suitable training in employable skills, so that they can avail gainful employment opportunities. At least 1 member from each project-affected family must be provided such skill-based training.
Apart from this, the party suggested that upgradation of technology status of TPPs should be taken up.
In order to improve the TPPs' energy efficiency and compliance with the pollution norms, the state government has to ensure that the technology status of the former is upgraded.
"We have to move to a Clean Coal Technology (CCT) regime involving Coal Gasification (CG), Combined Cycle (CC) and other advanced technologies to ensure higher energy efficiency and enhanced pollution control, resulting in greater environmental acceptability. Full compliance to existing environmental standards by the TPP management should be ensured," the memorandum argued.
Apart from this, the party called for a comprehensive review of approved power projects and cancellation of permits, wherever necessary.
Following Sompeta and
Kakarapalli incidents, The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has either cancelled clearances or issued 'stop-work' directives to concerned private TPPs.
The state government should immediately undertake a comprehensive review of all TPP projects in the state. The projects that clearly violate land acquisition & compensation norms, environmental statutes/regulations, or do not offer power to the state at favourable rates should be cancelled, if necessary.