KATHMANDU, JUNE 28

A partial section of the Bharatpur-Bardaghat 220 kV transmission line from Bharatpur of Chitwan to Bardaghat of Nawalparasi (east of Bardaghat Susta) has come into operation, which is expected to improve the power supply to the western region.

The 56-kilometre transmission line from Chitwan's Bharatpur Metropolitan City-11 substation to Arunkhola in Nawalparasi was brought into operation on Monday.

The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) had charged all the sections where the construction has been completed through alternative arrangements as it was not possible to send additional power from Bharatpur to Bardaghat due to obstruction at Dumkibas in Nawalparasi.

By charging the partial section of the Bharatpur-Bardaghat 220 kV transmission line, about 25 MW of load has been shifted to Kawasoti and other areas, so additional power can be supplied from Bharatpur to the western regions.

According to NEA Executive Director Kulman Ghising, about 25 MW of additional electricity can be supplied from Bharatpur to Bardaghat after the section from Bharatpur to Pragtinagar is charged, further facilitating the management of power supply in the western region. 'The demand for electricity in Bharatpur is high but we could not send more power without considering the capacity of the existing 132 kV line. Now that the load has been shifted to the Kawasoti area, we can send more power to Bardaghat, reduce imports from Tanakpur for power supply to the western region and improve the voltage,' Ghising said.

The construction of Bharatpur-Bardaghat transmission line has not been completed due to obstruction by locals in some areas. The Supreme Court on Sunday dismissed the writ petition, paving the way for the construction of two towers.

The locals had filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court demanding change of route of the transmission line. Due to the interim order issued by the Supreme Court, the construction work of the line was stopped from March 2021.

According to Project Chief Santosh Shah, the process of determining the compensation will be started now as the writ petition has been dismissed by the apex court.

A version of this article appears in the print on June 29, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.