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Sukhu meets Khattar, says water cess won’t harm Haryana
Sukhu assured Khattar that the water cess to be levied by his government won’t cause any loss to Haryana. The Himachal CM clarified that water cess would not be levied on water but instead on power generation in about 172 hydropower projects being operated in the state.
Himachal chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu met his Haryana counterpart Manohar Lal Khattar in Chandigarh on Saturday and discussed various including, the water cess to be imposed on hydropower projects set up in the hill state.
Sukhu assured Khattar that the water cess to be levied by his government won’t cause any loss to Haryana.
The Himachal CM clarified that water cess would not be levied on water but instead on power generation in about 172 hydropower projects being operated in the state. He said the purpose of the meeting was to remove misconceptions regarding water cess.
In the meeting, detailed discussions were held on the Renuka Dam project and the joint Kishau hydropower project of Himachal, Haryana and Uttarakhand. The implementation of the Adi Badri project and the origin of the Saraswati river were also discussed.
Sukhu said that unnecessary delay in the implementation of various joint projects increases the cost of project while the objective of the scheme is not fulfilled as the benefits of the project were also delayed. He said senior officials of both states will hold a meeting to decide the future policy regarding various projects.
He invited Haryana to invest in hydropower projects and green hydrogen in Himachal Pradesh. He said that investment in Himachal would prove beneficial for both states.
Haryana chief minister said that hydropower projects are environment friendly besides meeting the requirements of the future. He said that investment in Himachal would be considered effective.
