KARIMGANJ, April 1 � In the 43rd annual general conference of the Association of Power Engineers of Assam and Meghalaya in Silchar it was disclosed that power crisis in the Barak Valley will be sorted out in the next one month.
Addressing the gathering, Chief General Manager, ASEB, Bikash Kusum Choudhury stated that sufficient electricity would be received from Palatona Thermal Power Plant wherein the consumers will have to shell out Rs 4.40 per unit of electricity. He also confessed that due to the recent introduction of new laws and reforms the board is facing severe problems which need immediate attention. He also stated that reduction in water level in the hydroelectric projects, paucity of fuel and excess rate of fuel have reduced the production of power.
The open session was presided over by Kanchan Chakraborty, president of the reception committee. NIT professor, Binoy Krishna Ray in his speech explained the depleted power scenario in the Barak Valley. He appealed to the concerned authorities to consider the interest of the consumers along with the employees. General secretary Chandra Kanta Das and president Biren Sarma of the Power Engineers Association stressed upon the problems of the engineers stating that many junior engineers retired without getting any promotion during their service period. The association opposed the government�s initiative of privatisation of the power sector. General Manager, Barak Valley Zone, K Chakraborty, Deputy General Manager Tapan Paul Choudhury, Nirmal Kumar Das, a former employee also addressed the gathering. The welcome speech was given by secretary of the reception committee, Anjan Kumar Swami. Altogether 124 representatives from Assam and Meghalaya participated in the conference.