It is contended that :
The costs of the project would be much higher than the benefits to be derived from it which would render the project totally unviable.
Response
The economic viability of the Sardar Sarovar Project has been examined at various points of time by the experts. The economic viability of the project has been examined by
- Tata Economic Consultancy Services, Bombay (1983)
- The World Bank (1985).
- The Planning Commissioner, Government of India (1988).
- The World Bank (1990).
- The Sardar Pate I Institute of Economic and Social Research, Ahmedabad (1994).
The internal Rate of Return was estimated to be varying from 12.2% to 18.3%. It may be mentioned here that Nitin Desai Committee constituted by the Government of India has considered Internal Rate of Return of 9% (7% for drought prone area) as acceptable.
The World Bank was partly financing the Project. The World Bank has also accepted the economic viability of the project. It is for different reasons that the State at later stage had withdrawn from the World Bank assistance. |
