Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal inaugurated the four-day Kinnaur Tribal Festival at Reckong Peo today. He also inaugurated the 4.5 MW Bhawa augmentation project at Katgaon, constructed by the state electricity board at a cost of Rs 56 crore.

The project will fetch an annual income of Rs 7.85 crore to the board. Speaking on the occasion, Dhumal said the Bhawa augmentation project was an environment-friendly venture in which eight ropeways were put into service for the transportation of material to the site. He said the government had formulated a plan to exploit 23,000 MW power potential by 2020 and so far 7,856 MW had been harnessed.

He said the board would also take up the renovation work of the Jainag Devta temple at Yangpa village and bear the expenditure incurred on installing street lights in the village. The board had spent Rs 25 lakh on the water supply schemes for Yangpa Kafnu and Katgaon villages, Rs 34 lakh on the construction of the Kafnu-Kashba road, besides constructing a temporary bridge at Mashram. An amount of Rs 7 lakh had been spent on providing street lights in Yangpa village.

Dhumal said various development projects had been taken up in Kinnaur district, which included a mini-secretariat at Bhabanagar, a tehsil office at Moorang, offices at Pooh, a high school building at Barang, an auditorium in Government Degree College at Peo, a school building at Samiru and flow irrigation schemes for Nanajo-Tranda and Kansang-Jangi. Another flow irrigation scheme was being constructed for Them-Grang and the Telangi water supply scheme for Ribba gram panchayat.

Dhumal announced Rs 5 lakh for the Maheshwar Devta complex, Rs 3 lakh for Nag Mandir at Yangpa village, Rs 1 lakh for Bodh Bhikshu Mandir, Rs 1 lakh for Mahila Mandal, Yangpa, Rs 3 lakh for the Kuldev temple, Rs 2 lakh for Mahila Mandal, Dei, Rs 3 lakh for the Karana Mahila Mandal and Rs 4 lakh for the Katgaon Mahila Mandal.