PDC dream home ‘shattered’ in Kashmir

The work on multi-crore corporate office for J&K Power Development Corporation (PDC), one of the few profit earning undertakings in the state, here, has been shelved with officials stating that a bureaucratic lobby was “sabotaging” the project.
A senior official said Jammu and Kashmir Project Construction Corporations (JKPCC), which was handed over the execution of the project, was allocated around Rs five crore by the previous Government for setting up the PDC headquarters at Raj Bagh, here.
The land for the Corporation office was acquired for around Rs 6 crore after its Board of Directors headed by the Chief Minister had given approval for the construction during the previous National Conference-Congress regime.
The work on the Rs 48.50 crore project was taken up in September 2013 and it was scheduled for completion in three years.
The official said, after initial piling work, the construction on the headquarters, five-storey building, was stopped immediately after 2014 floods.
“The flood had necessitated some changes in the structure but the PDC didn’t take any decision on it or resumption of the work. We are waiting for clearance from their side to restart the work,” said Managing Director (MD) JKPCC DileepThusu.
The official however said following the deluge, there was a decision taken that the proposed basement of the structure would be done away with in view of the flood and the ground floor would be kept reserved for car parking. “It was communicated to the construction company,” the official said.
Sources said since the PDC was State Government owned company the Government should have shown interest in early completion of the project. The official alleged that there was a bureaucratic lobby against the construction of the PDC’s corporate office here.
“Otherwise if the project was cleared at the first place why should be there delay for completing it?” the sources said, adding after the release of Rs 4.75 crores to the JKPCC in 2013, the funding for the project was stopped.
A JKPCC official said as of now they have completed the piling work on the project. “Despite taking up the matter (funding) with authorities concerned on several occasions, there has been no progress,” the official said.
The PDC which is one of the few profit earning bodies in the State was housed in a building opposite to civil secretariat here before the structure was gutted in a devastating fire in 2010.
The corporation which owns 22 hydropower projects including 900 MW Baglihar-I and II, functioned from a rented accommodation at Boulvard here for many years before it was shifted to newly constructed building at the earlier place this year.
However, against an originally allocated space of 20,000 sqft, the Corporation has been allocated the space of just 7,000 sqft in the building.
“The irony is that despite giving revenue of crores of rupees to the state, the PDC has been left homeless. This speaks of the government’s apathy towards the Corporation which if paid the due attention, has the potential to change the fortunes of the state,” said an official.
Commissioner/Secretary PDD, Dheraj Gupta, who holds additional charge of Managing Director PDC, said he wasn’t aware about the Corporation’s corporate office.
“The PDC has shifted to new office opposite to civil secretariat. We have started to operate from there,” he said.
Executive Director (Civil), PDC Ahmed Muzaffar Lanker said the work on the project would be started soon.