Amendment to Gas Pipeline Act renews hope for CGD network to Kashmir
There is renewed hope for the Bhatinda-Srinagar Gas Pipeline after State Administrative Council (SAC) approved an amendment to the Jammu & Kashmir Underground Public Utilities (Acquisition of Rights of User in Land) Act 2014. According to a senior official involved in the project, which is executed by GSPL India Gasnet Limited (GIGL) Gujarat, amendment of the act also know as J&K Gas Pipeline Act, 2014 approved on November 28 will provide an extension for the “vital” project that was conceptualised in 2011. “The project as of now is going on in stages but now the amendment of the act which was lying with the state government for last three years is a positive move,” the official said. “It is hoped that with the amendment, J&K will have a gas pipeline to Srinagar by the end of year 2019 and city gas distribution networks in Jammu, Srinagar and other major towns within the next 18-24 months,” he said. Bringing changes in the Act will help to expedite work on the project, said a representative of GIGL in Srinagar, wishing anonymity. Presently, Jammu and Kashmir is one of the few states which does not have a gas pipeline entering the state. One of the impediments to the expansion of the National Gas Grid to J&K were certain provisions in the Jammu & Kashmir Underground Public Utilities (Acquisition of Rights of User in Land) Act 2014, because of which projects could not be implemented. However, the official said amendment to the act will also help overcome “bureaucratic wrangles” in this vital project. “Now that the amendment to the act is made, work on J&K sector of the project will start. Now we hope for availability of funds and clearance from Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) and Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas,” said the official. He said by extending time period of the execution of the project, the state government has increased the project time limit from existing 2 years to 5 years now. “This will press the GSPL and Government of India to expedite laying of gas pipeline in J&K,” he said. The official said several bottlenecks in the project which originally pans from Mehsana in Gujarat to Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and J&K have overcome. The gas pipeline project was cleared by the National Conference-led government in 2011 after the GSPL-led consortium bagged the order for it after bidding. The project envisages supply of round-the-clock LPG to Kashmir which faces frequent shortage of cooking gas in winters due to closure of Srinagar-Jammu Highway, sometimes for days together. The project is initially expected to generate two lakh jobs and 80 percent of employment has to be local, official said. The original completion date for laying the 725 km long pipeline project was July 6, 2014. In June 2013, J&K Governor issued an Ordinance to facilitate acquisition of land for laying the pipeline from Bhatinda in Punjab to Srinagar via Jammu. In view of the special position of J&K under Article 370, the ordinance was mandatory to facilitate the acquisition of land by the Gujarat-based Corporation for the pipeline. The ordinance has been modelled on Gujarat Water and Gas Pipeline Act, 2000. The High Court in March 2017 ordered the state government as well as Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) to inform it about the status of gas pipeline project from Mehsana-Bhatinda to Srinagar.