A female politicians who had gone into retirement and now dreams of entering politics again did not have the backbone to go ahead with the Norochcholai power plant in 1999, said Power and Energy Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi yesterday.  

Ms. Wanniarachchi speaking during an adjournment motion in Parliament yesterday said the construction of the Norochcholai power plant did not begin because of this politician who led the country at the time.

She said the coal power plant which was planned in 1982 had to be stopped because several environmentalists opposed it.

The minister said it had been possible to add 300MW of electricity to the national grid in 2006 through the first phase of the power project and to add a further 600MW in the second phase in 2010. (Yohan Perera)