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China Questions About Enforcing Hydropower Deal With Nepal
By KTM Metro Reporter
March 19, 2012: the Chinese company called China Three Gorges Corp that signed off a 750 MW West Seti Hydropower project deal with the Government of Nepal recently has doubted whether it could be enforced, as the parliamentary committee on Natural Resources has been fussy about this project and some lawmakers of the opposition party have questioned the validity of this deal according to the foreign and local news.
However, the Government of Nepal is determined to enforce the deal but if the power project fails then credit for it should go to the lawmakers such as Laxman Ghimire and Gagan Thapa of NC for making this deal a failure and continuing the power failure in Nepal and for keeping Nepalis in perpetual darkness.
The Baidya group of the UCPN-Maoist needs to call such parliamentarians anti-national rather than calling the current government that has shown some enthusiasm to do something good to the people, an anti-national. These NC guys are anti-national because they want to prevent the power project from implementation that will provide the power-starved Nepalis with power.
Spokesman for the Ministry of Energy Arjun Karki said the China Three Gorges Corp. has sent a letter to the government of Nepal doubting the enforcement of the power deal, as the company has to suspend work while the parliamentary committee on natural resources conducts investigation into the possible irregularities in reaching the power project deal with it. However, the Government of Nepal has said that it is committed to enforce the deal and there is no irregularity in reaching the deal.
Following the deal, the Chinese company is to provide Nepal with 75 percent of $1.6 billion total cost of the project in soft loan, the state-run utility company called Nepal Electricity Authority contributes the remaining 25 percent of the cost of the project.
At the press conference held in Dhangai, far-western Nepal, Chairman of West Seti Major Concern Committee Ratan Bahadur Saud has said that unfortunately, the West Seti hydro project is politicized, and put to the doubt of implementing it even though the 750 megawatt West Seti Hydro Project is not only for the prosperity of the people in the far-western region but also of the people of the country as a whole, as it provides the much need power, so he has demanded the government initiate the work on it, ‘The Himalayan Times’ of today writes.
Speaking at the same press conference, General Secretary to West Seti Major Concern Committee Bishnu Chand warned of a strong protest if the government were not to implement the project. “We are waiting for the report of the Parliament. We will announce agitation once the report comes out,” ‘The Himalayan Times’ quotes Chand.
Member of West Seti Major Concern Committee Tilak Bahadur Singh has accused the politicians of playing the game of the commission in the project. “Greedy politicians have halted the construction work due to their inability to get the commission as per their demand,” ‘The Himalayan Times’ of today quotes Singh.
