Fate of Pulichintala power plant hangs in the balance.

Post-bifurcation, the fate of the APGenco's 120-MW hydro-electric project at Pulichintala hangs in the balance as the State government is yet to issue guidelines as to which State - Andhra Pradesh or Telangana - should be allotted the power generated by four units of 30 MW capacity each.

Now, the contentious part of the project is that the dam is located in Pulichintala village of Guntur district, while the power plant is situated on Telangana side (in Nalgonda district).

The APTransco and the Southern Power Distribution Company Limited (SPDCL) are awaiting instructions on utilisation of power produced by this multi-purpose project named after Padma Bhushan Kanuru Lakshmana Rao. The first unit is expected to come on stream not before June 2015.

As per the existing project plan, power is to be evacuated through a 130-KV line to Huzurnagar in Nalgonda district, where a 220-KV sub-station is to be built in addition to a switch yard at the plant site itself. However, none of these works have begun so far.

THE HINDU