The Jammu and Kashmir government’s decision to lease out electricity from a major under-construction power project to Rajasthan has sparked allegations of robbing the region of its resources despite its own history of acute power deficiency.

Jammu and Kashmir politicians are up in arms against the government after Ratle Hydro Electric Power Corporation Limited (RHPCL), a joint venture between NHPC Limited and the J&K State Power Development Corporation, entered into a power purchase agreement (PPA) with the Rajasthan Urja Vikas and IT Services Limited for offtake of electricity.

An official spokesman on Friday said the agreement was signed on January 3 in Jaipur for the offtake of power for a period of 40 years from the commercial operation date of the project and as per power allocation to be notified by the Union power ministry.

“At a time when J&K is facing a severe power crisis never witnessed before, our hydro-electric resources are being outsourced to other states. Yet another decision that will rob people of basic amenities with an intention to collectively punish the inhabitants of J&K,” former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti posted on X.

The National Conference said the agreement had added to the “looming scepticism” as it asked the government to bring out a white paper on the deal to inform people about its underlying purpose and the benefits for the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

A statement by the NC said the agreement had created a lot of misgivings.

“Normally, power purchase agreements usually last for a maximum of 20 years. However, in this case, they are signing it for 40 years at a pre-negotiated price, which is also unknown. There has been a feeling of betrayal amongst the people of J&K that their resources are being bartered away,” the statement said.

The party said the government should have prioritised providing electricity to domestic consumers first as Jammu and Kashmir was battling an energy crisis.

“For the electricity-starved people of J&K, is this agreement a solution? It's a question that the government has to answer. It makes no sense that at a time when J&K is grappling with an electricity crisis, the government is selling electricity to other states,” the party said.

J&K Apni Party leader Altaf Bukhari asked the administration to come clear on facts, wondering why it has “off and on come on record claiming that it has been buying power supply from other states to meet the demands in the Union Territory”.

“At the same time, leasing out its own supply to another state is beyond comprehension,” he said.

Lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha said he was personally supervising the power distribution in the valley to ensure uninterrupted supply.