Agartala, Nov 25 (LatestNewsX) – In a press briefing, Tripura Power Minister Ratan Lal Nath announced that the state now enjoys an average of 23 hours and 49 minutes of electricity each day, positioning Tripura fourth among Indian states for power availability.
“The city and suburban areas receive power for 23 hours 59 minutes, whereas villages get 23 hours 43 minutes,” the minister explained, referencing data from the National Feeder Monitoring System (NFMS).
He noted that before the BJP’s 2018 administration, residents could rely on roughly 21 hours of supply. “Before the BJP government came to power in 2018, the state used to get power for around 21 hours, but now it receives 23 hours and 49 minutes a day. This is the report of the National Feeder Monitoring System (NFMS) of the government of India,” he added.
Holding both the Power and Agriculture portfolios, Nath said the department has been working tirelessly over the past seven and a half years to provide reliable, high‑quality power to Tripura’s citizens. He delivered these comments during the bhumi pujan ceremony of the Rukhiya 120 MW Combined Cycle Gas Turbine Project.
He highlighted that the gas‑based thermal plant at Rukhi — located 60 km south of Agartala in the Sepahijala district — was constructed in six phases between 1990 and 2006. The site houses nine open‑cycle gas turbine generators; three of them, each with a 21 MW capacity, remain operational. “These units have been declared abandoned as their production period has passed. Due to the expiry of their period, their production was completely stopped at various times between 2002 and 2013,” Nath said.
Presently, the plant can produce 63 MW, but limited natural gas supply means only 19 MW are being generated. With support from the Asian Development Bank, the existing open‑cycle units will be upgraded into a 120 MW combined‑cycle plant. The new configuration will utilize the waste heat from the turbines to drive a steam turbine, boosting overall efficiency from 35‑45 % to about 60 %. He noted that the project is slated to cost ₹1,320 crore and should be operational within three years.
Nath also reported that Tripura has laid down 13,435 km of Aerial Bunched Cable (AB Cable) to curb power theft in rural areas, compared to an initial 198 km. He further mentioned a partnership with state‑run NHPC to evaluate an 800 MW pumped‑storage facility at Chawmanu, Dhalai district. “If the pumped storage project is built in the state, it will be the first of its kind in the Northeast region. As a result, there will be a significant improvement in the economic progress of the state,” he said.
Finally, he revealed that 46.49 % of consumer accounts now pay their monthly electricity bills, up from 42.28 % earlier, and that the trend is steadily improving.
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