Pekhubela solar project in focus as House debates corruption
A debate over the adjournment motion brought by BJP MLA Randhir Sharma continued on the second day of the winter session, with the focus shifting to the 32 MW solar power plant installed by the Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation in the Pekhubela area of Una district.
During the debate, former Industries Minister and BJP MLA from Jaswan Pragpur, Bikram Thakur, alleged that a solar power plant with a 35 MW installed capacity had been set up in Gujarat at a cost of Rs 144 crore. In contrast, he claimed that a similar plant in Pekhubela had been installed at a cost of Rs 220 crore. Thakur accused the state government of a scam in the installation of the solar power plant and called for an inquiry into the matter.
In response, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said when comparing the Pekhubela solar project with projects from Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Ltd with capacities of 168 MW, 18 MW, 20 MW and 18 MW, the cost of the Himachal project was more reasonable.
The CM added that the Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI) in Himachal Pradesh is about 25 per cent lower than in states like Rajasthan and Gujarat, meaning that electricity production per MW is also 25 per cent less. He explained that while solar power generation per MW in Himachal is around 15 lakh units, in Rajasthan and Gujarat, it reaches 18-20 lakh units per MW. As a result, to ensure guaranteed energy, extra solar modules have to be installed in Himachal.
He highlighted that the construction of the Pekhubela plant was completed in a record time of six months, whereas similar projects usually take around 18 months to complete.
The CM said comparisons of solar projects should be based on per unit electricity costs or DC installed capacity. He also refuted Bikram Thakur’s claim, stating that the cost of the Gujarat project Thakur mentioned had also risen above Rs 200 crore.
