Previous Year Question
With reference to coal-based thermal power plants in India, consider the following statements:
None of them uses seawater.
None of them is set up in water-stressed district.
None of them is privately owned.
How many of the above statements are correct?
Only one
Only two
All three
None
Correct Answer: D
Detailed Solution
All three statements are incorrect.
Statement 1 is incorrect: Some coastal coal-based thermal power plants in India use seawater. Official documents concerning the Mundra Ultra Mega Power Project in Gujarat refer to a seawater pump house, reverse-osmosis plant and seawater-based systems. Therefore, it is incorrect to state that none of the plants uses seawater.
Statement 2 is incorrect: Thermal power plants in India are also located in water-stressed regions. Units of the Parli Thermal Power Plant in Maharashtra’s Beed district had to be shut down because of a severe water shortage. This example establishes that thermal power plants can be situated in water-stressed districts.
Thermal power plants primarily require water for the following purposes:
Cooling steam in the condenser
Supplying boiler-feed water
Managing ash
Operating flue-gas desulphurisation and other pollution-control systems
Statement 3 is incorrect: Several coal-based thermal power plants in India are privately owned. The Central Electricity Authority’s list records private-sector thermal power plants such as SKS Binjkote, JSW Ratnagiri and GMR Kamalanga.