Panaji: Power minister Ramkrishna ‘Sudin’ Dhavalikar on Sunday said Goa govt has no plans to hand over the state’s power distribution network to Tata Power or any other private entity. He also warned that if Tata Power has been approaching panchayats directly for no-objection certificates (NoCs) without routing its proposal through the govt, the practice is “wrong” and must stop immediately.Dhavalikar said govt has already conveyed its opposition to the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC), highlighting the drawbacks of allowing Tata Power to enter Goa’s power distribution sector.“Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai is saying that Tata Power is applying for NoCs in panchayats for power distribution in the state, and he is claiming they have the backing of govt. This is totally wrong. They may have sought NoCs from panchayats. But in our discussion with JERC we have put across all the negatives of this. Goa govt is not ready to give its power distribution lines to anyone,” said Dhavalikar.He said the state has invested heavily in strengthening its electricity infrastructure by setting up new substations, upgrading existing ones and laying underground power cables.“In these circumstances, any agency which wants to enter Goa and create confusion, this is not acceptable to us. Goa govt is completely opposed to this. Till the time I am in this chair, this move will be opposed. Govt is not in favour of giving any NoC to anybody to run our power distribution systems. If they are going to any panchayats, they should not give NoCs to Tata Power,” he said.Dhavalikar added that any proposal to operate power distribution in Goa should be routed through state govt. “If they are seeking NoC without our knowledge, this is wrong. Govt is not in favour of this. They should stop this. And they should go through the govt for any such thing,” he said.Tata Power Company Ltd has petitioned the JERC for a power distribution licence in Goa, where the state electricity department is currently the sole distribution licensee. In an interim order, the commission granted the company two months, until Aug, to comply with regulatory requirements and submit a compliance report after observing during last month’s hearing that its application did not fully meet the prescribed norms.
