Century old Pharping hydro to be resumed

Kathmandu December 24- The government has planned to bring the Pharping Hydropower Project, the first electricity plant in the country and the second in Asia, back to life. The Cabinet has decided to fire up the century-old relic from the Rana period in an attempt to boost morale with the country reeling under severe load-shedding and a fuel crisis.

Necessary studies and preparations will be made to put the historical 500 kW power station and other small hydel projects back into operation within two years under the government’s Two Year Immediate Action Plan.

Established in 1911 during the time of Prime Minister Chandra Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana, the Pharping plant was humming as late as the 1990s. King Prithvi Bir Bikram Shah had inaugurated the powerhouse by turning on electric light bulbs during a programme held at Tundikhel, Kathmandu. In 2010, it was declared a Living Museum by the government and opened to visitors.

Gokarna Raj Pantha, assistant spokesperson at the Ministry of Energy, said that the government had planned to operate the historic plant occasionally as a demonstration more than as a way to supply regular power.