Reliance Infrastructure has given an assurance to the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) that low hanging power lines that had resulted in the electrocution of 99 elephants in Orissa will be improved upon. A meeting to this effect was held last week in New Delhi and was attended by officials from the discom, MoEF, Orissa state government, the Wildlife Society of Orissa and the Wildlife Protection Society of India.
Reliance Infrastructure owns a 51 per cent share of the four power distribution companies in Orissa and 79 of the 99 elephant deaths occurred in elephant habitats within the distribution areas of the WESCO, NESCO and SOUTHCO companies.
The Wildlife Society of Orissa had surveyed low hanging lines in Dhenkanal district, a key elephant habitat, and found these sagging in 147 locations. Belinda Wright, who heads the Wildlife Protection Society of India, said, “Orissa’s electrical lines are poorly maintained. Reliance Infrastructure has agreed to develop a plan to tackle this problem but they have demanded `61 crore to be able to comply with these regulations.”
The NGOs have been pressing on the need to overhaul large parts of the distribution network including the pulling up of sagging overhead power lines, the installation of circuit breakers and the placing of barbed wires around electricity poles.
“There is also a need for the distribution companies to comply with mandatory regulations set by the Central Electricity Authority of India,” Ms Wright added. In December 2010, the Indian government had constituted a four-member committee to look into the cause of elephant deaths because of electrocution in Orissa. The report listed out a number of recommendations which included the installation, maintenance and regular inspection of power lines in the state.
The discoms had earlier demanded `20 crore funding be given to them under the Compensatory Afforestation and Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) meant for the conservation of wildlife and forests.
The MoEF was not keen for CAMPA funds to be given to the discoms as this money is collected from largely corporate houses who have diverted forest land. The principal chief conservator in Orissa had supported the environment ministry stand that CAMPA funds should not be released to a discom.