By Our Correspondent
Hupsekot (Nawalpur), Dec. 3: Electricity generation from wind has been stopped in Rudrapur Dhauwadi of Hupsekot Rural Municipality in East Nawalparasi. The power generation has stopped in lack of maintenance of the wind-based power plant.
In the early days, the locals were excited to use the electricity generated from the project 24 hours a day, but now they are disappointed that the production has stopped, said Padam Bahadur Ranamagar, chairman of Ward No. 5 of Hupsekot Rural Municipality
According to Laxmi Pandey, chairperson of Hupsekot Rural Municipality, the electricity generated from wind in 2068 BS with the assistance of Rs. 15 million from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has been cut off due to lack of maintenance in the plant.
The project has a capacity to generate 12 KW electricity - 10 KW from wind and 2 KW from solar. Ward chair Ranamagar said that electricity generation has been completely shut down due to lack of maintenance for a long time.
Although a new inverter was purchased spending Rs. 400,000 budget of Rural Municipality and Rs. 700,000 provided by the ADB, the power plant has now shut down and locals are compelled to live in dark in lack of maintenance, said Ranamagar.
In the first four years of its construction, 12 kilowatt power was generated and the locals were using it 24 hours a day.
The Area Police Office in Rudrapur and 42 households benefited from this. Earlier, it was possible to play TV, radio and charge mobile phones, but now it is closed, said Ranamagar.
Pandey said that the project was constructed by the ADB but could not be handed over even nine years after its construction.
Even though the project has not been handed over yet, Hurhure Danda Agricultural Cooperative has been given the responsibility to take care of the project. However, the project has stalled as it did not receive Rs. 4 million budget allocated by the government of Gandaki Province for its maintenance last year, Pandey said.
Pandey said that there was a technical problem to carry out maintenance work in the project as it was yet to be handed over from the ADB but the ADB has not shown interest in the project.