KSEB plans underground cables for the City

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) hopes to complete underground (UG) cabling works on two major stretches in the capital city this financial year, Electricity Minister Aryadan Mohammed told the Assembly on Tuesday.UG cabling work on the seven-km Thirumala-Peyad stretch and the 4.5-km Thirumala-Karamana stretch will be completed in the 2011-12 fiscal itself, he said in a written reply. Along both stretches, the power utility is laying 33 KV lines.The work on the Thirumala-Peyad stretch is being undertaken at a cost of Rs 2.79 crore. The work on the Thirumala-Karamana stretch will cost the KSEB Rs 1.52 crore, the Minister said in reply to a question by V Sivankutty MLA.The KSEB also hopes to complete laying UG cables along a distance of 15 km from Pothencode to Paruthippara by the 2012-13 financial year, he said. This will cost the KSEB Rs 90 lakh, the Minister said. On this stretch, 110 KV lines are being laid.UG cables are being laid as part of streamlining power distribution across the capital city.An old project of the city which had once created much interest - generation of power from sea waves - found a mention in the Assembly on Tuesday, with Kovalam MLA Jameela Prakasam raising the issue. In a written reply, Aryadan Mohammed said that there indeed had been a project implemented by the Chennai-based NIOT. But it was scrapped after the company found it impractical, he said.Quarries in the district also made a brief appearance in the Assembly on Tuesday. The Assembly was told in a written reply that ten illegal quarries were shut in the capital. They were either operating on ‘Puramboke’ land or on private land without proper authorisation. Thiruvananthapuram is placed second along with Alappuzha in the number of quarries banned. Palakkad, which has banned 24 quarries, is in the first position.