Crisis solutions: Captive power and Cauvery TNN, Mar 23, 2010

WE’LL HAVE THE POWER
Captive power for Bangalore — that’s the mantra that political parties are applying to answer one of the crucial issues of the BBMP election — power crisis. As for water, all swear by the Cauvery Fourth Phase Stage II and rainwater harvesting.

BJP and Congress, the two main contenders, played the dice for a dedicated power supply facility for Bangalore. Since thermal is hardly a possibility and the amount from hydro is not great, they zeroed in on gas power by tapping the Dabhol-Bangalore network at Bidadi.

According to transport minister R Ashoka, their party is planning to have the Bidadi power station dedicated to the city, which would resolve the power woes of the citizens.

“There is water scarcity and one of the reasons is there is no power to pump the water from 50-60 km. In all cities — Kolkata, Mumbai and others — there is dedicated power supply to the city. Only in Bangalore, there is no such source. It is a major concern. We need captive power for such a huge city,” said KPCC president R V Deshpande.

Former CM and JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy said that during the JD(S) tenure, when he was chief minister, there was hardly any load shedding. Power was rationed properly and distribution planned. “Though all the Escoms are running at a loss, Bescom was profitable. But even Bescom is under a loss during the present government. The reason is lack of planning,’’ he said.

TALL WATER PROMISES TOO
For water, everyone is pointing to two magic solutions — the Rs 3,200-crore Cauvery Fourth Phase Stage II project supported by the Japan Bank of International Cooperation (JBIC), and the compulsory rainwater harvesting regulation for the city. R Ashoka said the authorities were taking suggestions from the ABIDe task force for long-term plans.
Deshpande stressed that industries should depend mostly on recycled water and reuse water for their internal operations. “This government is not pressuring industries to go away from the cities and operate sustainably. I don’t want any industries in and around Bangalore. Industries that pollute, like distilleries and chemical factories, have to go away from the city fringes,’’ he said.

Ground water recharge will be a priority for the Congress. He stated that KPCC has rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharging in their manifesto, released on Monday. “We have already implemented the rainwater harvesting legislation and it is a big move towards addressing the water crisis,’’ said Ashoka. Kumaraswamy said a water-starved state like Karnataka needs to follow the example of Singapore and other international cities, who desalinate sea water and use it in the city. “When I was CM, I had taken a group of ministers to Singapore to learn their ways of water management, but there was no follow-up.”