Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that for the rapid economic development of the country, it is mandatory to make sufficient electricity available at an affordable price. Dr Singh said, without power supply no sector can work efficiently, whether it is agriculture or the service sector. He was addressing a function after dedicating the Seepat Super Thermal Power Plant of the National Thermal Power Corporation, NTPC, in Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh today. The Prime Minister said, the UPA government has taken effective measures to enhance power generation capacity in the country. In the 11th Plan, the capacity had increased by 55 thousand Megawatt, while in the 12th plan, the capacity targeted has been increased by one lakh 18 thousand Megawatt. He said the country is now adopting World Class Super Critical Technology in more and more power plants not only to reduce power generation costs, but also to minimize the adverse effect on the overall environment.
The Prime Minister also dedicated a Super Thermal Power Plant worth 2980 Megawatt capacity to the nation. He laid the foundation stone for the proposed 4,000 Megawatt Super Thermal Power Project of NTPC to be set up at Lara village in Raigarh district of Chhattisgarh.
The Seepat Power Plant of the NTPC is the first project of the NTPC using Super Critical Technology. This technology is the next generation method of power generation that saves coal and also maintains ecological balance, which will result in affordable electricity to the public.
Chhattisgarh Governor Shekhar Dutt, Chief Minister Raman Singh, Union Minister of State for Power, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Minister of State for Agriculture Charan Das Mahant were also present on the occasion.