Rajasthan Minister remembers Sikkim fondly, shares details of green energy agenda of his Govt

ANAND OBEROI
JAIPUR, 18 March: “Teesta is one of the most beautiful rivers I have ever seen and then Tsomgo is one place which I recommend everyone to visit,” shared Dr. Jitendra Singh, the IPR Minister of Rajasthan, who is also the minister in-charge for PHED, Energy &Power and also holds the portfolio for the minister for
Green Water development. While interacting with journalists from Sikkim currently on a Rajasthan tour, the Minister made the proud announcement that Rajasthan will soon no longer be the land of sand dunes but a Valley of Solar Energy generating approximately 28,000 MW of solar energy and supplying power
to the entire country. As per plans, this will happen in the next five years.
The Minister, who obviously remembers Sikkim fondly, began the interaction session with condolences on behalf of all Rajasthan for the lives lost to the 18 September Earthquake in Sikkim. On the policy thrust areas of his State, he highlighted that green energy generation was being diligently pursued by the
Government here. With 36,000 square miles of desert at Jaiselmer alone, solar energy presented a natural option. Rajasthan is already the Number One state in solar energy generation with 1,500 MW slated to be generated by 2013. At present, Rajasthan generates 924 MW of solar energy.
“Our mission to become self-sufficient by 2017 and then start supplying power to the rest of the country as well. At present, we have a deficit of 300 lakh units,” the Minister informed, while adding that the State was generating 38,000 MW of power at present through different options like thermal and wind.
It may be mentioned that Rajasthan also stands second to Tamil Nadu in generation of wind energy with an output of 1,850 MW. The state has been increasing its green power generation by 15 percent annually even as it is developing 6 Super Thermal power stations at an estimated cost of Rs. 6,000 crore.
The Minister, as mentioned, also holds the PHE portfolio and admitted that supply of drinking and irrigation water supply to dry areas presented a major challenge to Rajasthan. This, the state plans to resolve by developing largest canal network in the world which – the Indra Gandhi Canal - which will flow from Himachal Pradesh through various areas in Rajasthan and into Chambal in Madhya Pradesh, considered one of the driest areas.
As for the media scene in Rajasthan, Mr. Singh, who also holds the IPR portfolio, informs that there were over 14,500 accredited journalists in Rajasthan and that they enjoyed access to free residential plots and other subsidies here.The Minister also delved at length on initiatives taken by the Rajasthan government to improve the male to female ratio in the State with such schemes as Janini Sishu Suraksha Yojana under which the State pays for all maternity and delivery cases of Rajasthini women. While informing that 16 lakh women had already benefited under this scheme since it was launched last year, he added that 1.3 lakh jeeps have been provided to GPUs across the State to bring in maternity patients from the villages to hospitals for free.
There was also a scheme under which the government paid for the wedding expenses of daughters of widows, a first of such initiatives in the country.