Thiruvananthapuram

Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday warned that any move by the state government to set up a nuclear power plant in Kerala would trigger widespread public protests.

Referring to Electricity Minister Sunny Joseph’s statement that a nuclear power plant at Cheemeni in Kasaragod was being considered as a long-term solution, Vijayan said such a proposal would face stiff public resistance.

"If anyone thinks establishing a nuclear power plant will solve Kerala's power problems, there will be massive opposition in our society. There is no doubt about it. Intense protests will emerge," he told reporters here.

Vijayan said that during the LDF governemnt tenure, it did not even consider such a proposal.

Suggestions had come from certain quarters, but his government made it clear then that it would not proceed with such a step, he said.

"If the present government does not refrain from such thoughts now, it will only pave the way for unnecessary problems in Kerala. Instead, it should strengthen the power sector through other means," he added.

Responding to questions on the ongoing power shortage in the state, Vijayan said while technical issues could arise under any government, the present situation reflected a failure to make adequate advance preparations.

"In such situations, consumers are usually informed in advance about likely disruptions. What is happening now is entirely different. On Thursday night, I myself had to remain without electricity for one hour and fifteen minutes. It is not happening to me alone; many people are facing the same problem," he said.

He said the prolonged power outages were causing hardship to students preparing for the upcoming examinations.

"It is not that the government is unaware of the problems caused by these power cuts. The biggest weakness that has emerged is the failure to take proactive measures in advance. We are now hearing that there is a daily shortage of 300 to 600 MW under normal circumstances," he said.

Questioning the government's handling of power procurement, Vijayan said permission had been granted to purchase electricity at higher rates, but only 150 MW was procured through a short-term contract in July.

"Doesn't this show that the necessary preparations were not made beforehand? Shouldn't the government have planned well in advance how much electricity Kerala required, how much was available, what the shortage would be and how it could be addressed," he asked.

The former chief minister claimed that the state's power sector had witnessed significant growth during the pervious LDF government's tenure.

He said the Transgrid project alone involved an investment of around Rs 10,000 crore and enabled the completion of the Edamon-Kochi power highway, which had earlier been considered difficult to execute.

He also claimed that domestic power generation capacity had increased by 2,091 MW during the LDF government's tenure.

Responding to a question on a previous power purchase agreement signed during the UDF government's earlier tenure, Vijayan said the LDF had serious reservations about the contract but chose to continue it in the larger public interest.

"If that contract had been cancelled, Kerala would have immediately faced a severe power shortage. Therefore, despite our differences over the agreement, we decided to continue purchasing power under it to protect the state's interests," he said.

He alleged that the previous UDF government had failed to obtain the approval of the Electricity Regulatory Commission before entering into the agreement, following which the Commission later cancelled it.

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"We took all possible legal and administrative steps against that cancellation because ensuring uninterrupted electricity supply to the people was our priority," Vijayan said.