Dehradun: Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami met Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar in New Delhi and sought a special energy package for Uttarakhand in view of the state’s growing power requirements. The Chief Minister requested financial assistance of ₹7,800 crore, additional power allocation, and support for several key energy infrastructure proposals.
The Chief Minister said that due to El Niño, below-normal rainfall, and reduced inflows into reservoirs, hydropower generation is likely to be affected in the coming months. Keeping this in view, he requested the Centre to allocate an additional 150 MW of electricity from the central pool for the remaining period of July 2026 and 200 MW for the month of August.
During the meeting, the Chief Minister sought central assistance or viability gap funding of ₹7,800 crore over the next five years for the development of proposed pumped storage projects with a combined capacity of approximately 10 GW in the state. He also requested that the approved capacity of the Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) be increased from 500 MWh to 665 MWh, along with viability gap funding for the project.
The Chief Minister also raised the issue of PITCUL’s ADB-assisted transmission project, which has an estimated cost of ₹3,638.26 crore. He requested that the proposed 80:20 financial arrangement (ADB loan: State contribution) for the ₹2,910.61 crore ADB loan be retained. He said that changing the ratio to 60:40 would adversely affect the financial benefits available to Uttarakhand as a special category state.
The Chief Minister also urged the Centre to extend special financial assistance for hydropower projects in Uttarakhand on the lines of the northeastern states. In response, Union Power Minister Manohar Lal Khattar assured him that all the proposals would be considered positively and that necessary action would be taken.
