December 3: The government has forwarded a special plan for upgrading power system of hill districts in Karnali and Sudurpaschim provinces.
The state-owned Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) has signed a loan agreement with the Asian Development Bank recently for the construction of 132-KV Kohalpur-Surkhet transmission line in order to supply uninterrupted electricity to the districts of Karnali province. The NEA plans to construct a high-voltage transmission line by upgrading the existing 33-KV transmission line.    
Although the transmission line from Kohalpur-Surkhet has a capacity of 33-KV, the transmission line from Surkhet to Kalikot is of only 11-KV capacity, resulting in massive disruption in power supply during monsoon due to low capacity transmission line. The Nepal Electricity Authority has forwarded a strategic plan in this regard with the support of donor agencies to resolve this problem.    
The Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation has set a target to provide electricity service in the districts that do not have access to central transmission line. The Ministry has directed the NEA to make a special package in order to provide electricity service to every household of the country.    
Finance Minister Janardan Sharma has also expressed commitment not to let resource crunch affect the upgrading and expansion of transmission line in Karnali Province.    
Study is being carried out for the construction of an additional 220-KV transmission line linking Dailekh of Surkhet to Jumla. The NEA is going to invest Rs 25 billion for the project. A package has been prepared in order to carry out activities with government’s investment in Dolpa.    
Executive Director of NEA, Kulman Ghising, said that activities have been initiated in other districts as well by taking concessional loan from the European Investment Bank and AAIB.    
Only 43 per cent population of Karnali Province have access to electricity. The NEA has given special priority keeping this situation of Karnali Province in mind, shared Ghising.    
Similarly, out of 547,671 households in Sudurpaschim Province, 71.07 per cent households have access to central transmission line.  -- RSS