Feb 07, The Statesman

State suffers for OREDA slackness
Statesman News Service

Bhawanipatna, Feb. 6: Renewable Energy is treated as a key to the future energy and economic security by the Government and the policy is made to mainstream renewable energy. The Orissa Renewable Energy Development Agency (OREDA) is the agency for the implementation of the different programmes.

It has launched many activities in the state. However, ironically the activities of OREDA are not picking up in Kalahandi where there is a lot of scope and need for remote village electricity, bio-gas, solar energy and hydro-power activities. Incidentally, for remote villages electrification programmes using non-conventional ways was proposed in the year 2003-04 to provide electricity to 70 remote tribal villages providing electricity using conventional ways is difficult due to the adverse topography. After a long gap OREDA surveyed the villages in March 2006 but there are no specific time schedule as to when these will be implemented. In this background it is becoming a distant dream and the people are loosing hope.
The district branch of OREDA is headed by an assistant director and six technical field staffs. Out of these six field staffs one is under suspension and another is attached to the office at Bhawanipatna under district rural development agency. The rest of the four field staffs practically having no work. Last year there was no fund for implementing the bio-gas programme and during the current year a target has been set for only 40 bio-gases supplies.

For proper implementation of work, to support the ministry of planning and coordination in various renewal energy programmes and creation of mass awareness in the districts in continuous basis the district advisory committee has been constituted to take various persons and officials within its fold.
The committee will suggest the mechanism for formulating and implementing of remote village energy plans and programmes, to review achievements and monitor the programmes. The advisory boards have been formed to get feedback as well as to gear up work.

In Kalahandi district the district advisory committee was constituted on 24 January 2005. The Committee has 20 members including 10 officials and 10 NGO representatives where collector and district magistrate is the ex-officio chairman and project director of DRDA.

However, ironically the district advisory committee which should sit at least once in every quarter over the concerning matters has not yet convened a single meeting. One of the members of the Committee Mr Bharat Bhusan Deo expressing his concern stated that the committee becomes meaningless without activities. He said that unfortunately meetings are not held and obviously the members have no role to play in such situation. In such a scenario despite feasibility of the development in the field of unconventional energy it is distant a dream in Kalahandi.