Powering in the Northeast: Promise, pitfalls and the road ahead

The North-East Power Conclave 2025 in Guwahati saw limited media attention, despite addressing critical issues like sustainable power generation, inter-State transmission, and industrial investment gaps.;

Update: 2025-06-22 05:17 GMT
Powering in the Northeast: Promise, pitfalls and the road ahead

More than 20,000 new transformers have been installed under different projects during the last three years. (Representational image)

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Considering the importance of the subjects being tackled, the inaugural two-day North-East Power Conclave 2025 held on June 17-18 in Guwahati, and attended by over 500 officials and professionals from the eight States of the region, surprisingly received less media focus than it should have.

Organized by the Indian Electrical & Electronics Manufacturers' Association, the conclave reportedly focused on promoting sustainable power generation, enhancing transmission networks, and strengthening last-mile connectivity. Key themes placed for discussion on the business sessions participated in by professionals dealt with important issues like green energy, transmission technologies, and seamless inter-State collaboration to shape a resilient and future-ready energy ecosystem in the region.

The conclave also provided a platform for the States to air their concerns not only regarding power generation, but also about the lack of interest displayed by industrialists from outside on the Northeast due to the power shortfall.

Nagaland Power Minister KG Kenye, for instance, asserted that time has come for increased attention of industry groups towards the State, a sentiment echoed by his Mizoram counterpart F Rodingliana, who pointed out that there was an urgent need to revive small hydro-power initiatives in his State. In fact, the woeful lack of interest shown by big industrialists was a recurrent theme in the conclave, one of the reasons cited being energy deficit.

Speakers also averred that the Northeast was, in fact, a gateway for energy transition to entire Southeast Asia, considering that the region has approximately 58,000 megawatts of hydro capacity, critical for meeting India's renewable energy targets. Hydropower generation, according to them, has an investment potential of about Rs 60,000 to Rs 70,000 crore over the next 10 years.

However, given the perils associated with unsustainable exploitation of hydropower resources, one needs to take such figures with a grain of salt. Assam, for example, is already feeling the negative consequences from a number of dams such as the Kurichhu dam in Bhutan or the Kopili hydroelectric project, not to mention the potential adverse impact of megadams like the one on Subansiri.

The irony is that while the population in the Brahmaputra Valley has such dams hanging like the proverbial Sword of Damocles hanging over their heads, how much free energy the State will get from new projects is anybody's guess. If a power conclave assists the region in driving investment, enhancing transmission capability, and unlocking the immense energy potential that can power not only the Northeast, but also support national growth, it is more than welcome.

However, in the name of integrating with the national power grid, it has to be ensured that regional interests are not sacrificed, otherwise any steps taken towards enhancing power output would be akin to mere exploitation.

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