Tea with The Tribune
‘State to formulate policy on power cuts soon’
Shabir Ahmed Khan, Minister of State for Forests, Environment, Power and CAPD
In a tete-e-tete with The Tribune, Shabir Ahmed Khan, Minister of State for Forests, Environment, Power and CAPD, discussed various challenges before the state, particularly relating to environment and power supply.
Two students, Megha Chopra and Ubaid-ul-Khaliq, from JP World School joined The Tribune team with their queries.
Jupinderjit Singh: You are an advocate by profession. How did you land up in politics?
Shabir Ahmed Khan (SAK): When I was studying law in Jammu University, I was quite active in student politics. I was the general secretary of the NSUI and our organisation did a commendable rescue work during 1988 floods. Later, Rajiv Gandhi visited the city and I was floored by his personality. Since that day, I am a loyal Congressman. I remained with the party and kept working for it even when I practised law at Rajouri. Later, Ghulam Nabi Azad encouraged me. I rose to the position of a district president, then chairman of the Pahari Board and eventually won the election by defeating my uncle and a seasoned politician. It was the most hard-fought election of any Assembly in the state. I won by 333 votes.
Ravi Krishnan Khajuria (RKK): How much forest cover is left in the state? What are we doing to save them?
SAK: I don’t have ready figures available, but the forest cover has improved. There was a lot of damage because of militancy and counter-militancy operations, but now things are back on track.
RKK: The plunder of green gold in the state goes on unabated. For instance, illegal sawmills that too deep inside jungles.
SAK: No doubt, there had been illegal sawmills in the state and they were once located in jungles, but ever since we took over the reins, strict action was initiated. And in certain cases we have cancelled the licences of sawmills, both in the Kashmir and Jammu regions.
RKK: Rich and influential people, including politicians, have encroached upon the forestland. Bhatindi and Sidhra townships have come up on forestlands.
SAK: We admit that forestland had been encroached upon in the past and there was a deep nexus of land mafia and politicians in some cases, but wherever incidents are brought to our notice, we will definitely initiate action.
Ashutosh Sharma: Every year thousands of acres of forest cover is lost in fires. What mechanism your ministry is putting in place to minimise the incidents?
SAK: In a recent cabinet meeting, serious discussions were held over fire-fighting techniques. We have all equipments with us and if needed we will purchase more. The need of the hour is to reintroduce social forestry through which people can help us in raising forest and protecting them.
Sunaina Kaul (SK): Are you taking any preventive measure to save trees from the electromagnetic rays emitting from cellphone towers, which are having harmful effect on trees?
SAK: Yes, the rays coming out from cellphone towers are having degrading effects on trees. We are discussing the issue. These towers are necessary for uninterrupted communication, so we cannot stop the installation of these towers. We will soon come out with a policy for taking prevent measures.
Megha Chopra (student): What are you doing to save the environment? Jammu and Kashmir glaciers are in the centre of debate on global warming.
SAK: We are concerned about it. The Union government is helping us. We held discussions with Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh on the issue, but we need public cooperation in preventing damage to the environment.
SK: You are State Power Minister as well? When will people get rid from unscheduled and long-hour power cuts, particularly in the areas where the Power Department has installed electronic meters?
SAK: We have come up with a policy on power cut which will be announced soon according to which there will be no unscheduled power cuts in the state. In the areas where we have installed electronic meters, there will be no power cuts. There will be 100 per cent uninterrupted power supply and power cuts will take place only if some major problem occurs. We will try to implement the policy before this Assembly session. We have installed around 5 lakh meters in different areas and around 3.50 lakh meters have also been approved for installation. Within three years, we will install around 13 lakh meters.
Ubaid (student): So students can hope of better power supply this summer?
SAK: Yes, many new power projects are under construction. Some others are being commissioned. I can say that soon the state would be power surplus.
RKK: What about the prestigious Sawalakote project that hangs in limbo. Will it come up? If so, when and at what cost?
SAK: The High Court recently quashed an arrangement with the Sawalakote consortium. Let the judgement come to us, we would study it and then see how the things could be pursued afresh. Having said so, I am more than confident that power scenario would improve in the next two to three years. We are going to start the second phase of Baglihar. Things would also fall in place as far as Sawalakote is concerned and Sewa II has almost been completed. The process has been set in motion for around 300 small and big hydel projects in the state.
Archit Watts: Why can’t the government encourage industrialists to install solar energy projects?
SAK: We are meeting the industrialists and our Chief Minister also held a meeting with the delegation of the Chamber of Commerce and Industries a few days ago in this connection. The government has also offered subsidy to public for installing solar projects.
Dinesh Manhotra (DM). Junior Ministers (MoS) always complaint that their seniors do not give them adequate powers. How do you manage the things?
SAK: As I became the minister first time, it is a new experience for me. I am getting full cooperation and support from my senior Cabinet colleagues. For taking every decision, my Cabinet ministers take me into confidence. Being Cabinet Ministers, our seniors have more power than us and we have to keep the thing also in mind.
DM: Although you do not belong to any faction of the Congress, don’t you think that bickering within the party has been badly affecting the performance of the government as well as the Congress?
SAK: I do agree that there are some differences of opinion, but these differences are not so serious. The coalition government has been functioning smoothly with the cooperation of the Congress. Minor differences between some leaders are not affecting the performance of the government. As far as the Congress is concerned, the party has been strengthening with every passing day. In the days to come, the Congress would emerge as a strong force in the state. Differences of opinions may be there, but they are resolved.
DM: To whom do you give the credit of strengthening the Congress in the state?
SAK: It is the combined effort of all leaders. But I admit without hesitating that it was Ghulam Nabi Azad, who, as a Chief Minister of the state, had laid the strong foundation of the Congress in this state. Had controversy over the Amarnath land not raked up, the party would be in a position to form the government on its own. Even people, who had voted for the BJP in the last Assembly elections, have been realising that they had committed historical blunder.
Archit Watts: After more than three decades, the Congress had won the Assembly elections from the Rajouri Assembly segment. What are you planning to convert this segment as citadel of the party?
SAK: Being an elected representative from Rajouri, I am working overtime to further strengthen the party in this belt. We have already set up organisation structure of the party at the grass-roots level. The Congress is not only strengthened in the Rajouri segment, but also in the adjoining Darhal where the party would emerge victorious in the next Assembly elections.
DM: Being a Pahari leader, what do you suggest to solve the controversy over Gujjars’ opposition to grant Scheduled Tribe (ST) status to Paharis.
SAK: Educated Gujjars are not against the ST status to Paharis. There are some vested interests who have been trying to rake up the issue to create wedge between the two communities. When Gujjars were granted the ST status, Paharis did not oppose, so there is no reasons for Gujjars to stall the process of granting the same benefits to Paharis. I am hopeful that this issue would be solved amicable and the ST status would be given to Paharis as Gujjars would not oppose the same.
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