A vociferous protest against big dams reaches its crucial stage when union environment minister Jairam Ramesh was greeted with protest as he was arriving in Guwahti for a public hearing on the NHPC owned big dam in Arunachal Pradesh.
As the Union minister started the public hearing at Machkhowa, ITA, hundreds of local organizations and political parties approached him to register stiff protest again the on going construction of the big dam in Gerukamukh by NHPC in the name of the lower Subansiri hydel project. Citing the expert panel report, these parties and organisations have told the minister that the big dam might spell an ecological disaster for the people in down stream areas.
PermalinkSubmitted by Hayang on Wed, 29/09/2010 - 05:16
--Lame Excuse by NHPC CMD S.K. Garg--
Despite strident protests in Assam with environmental concerns over construction of mega dams, National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) Chairman-cum-Managing Director S.K. Garg says that the project builders plan to commission three units in March 2012 and the remaining five units by December 2012. This is because Rs 4000 crore of the Rs 9000 crore project has been utilized. That means 40% of the expenses have been made. But is this a reason enough to sacrifice environment and the population of downstream areas which cannot be compensated even if the Indian central government bring all the riches in the world. When land is lost, existence is lost. When existence is lost, the very right to our natural habitat is lost.
In the devastating floods caused by the Tehri dam in Uttarakhand, the central government has promised a package of Rs 500 crore to the state government. That means every year there will be floods, the Indian government will dole out Rs 500 crore. So, within 8 years, Rs 4000 crore will have to be shelved out. If this is the economics involved, Rs 4000 crore is nothing for a rich country like India where many politicians and ministers have pocketed hundreds and thousands of crores. So, the justification of Rs 4000 crore by S.K. Garg sounds to be a lame excuse to keep the industrial corporations who fund the elections happy and satisfied.
There seems to be no end of anomalies in the HSLC and AHM examinations this year.
In yet another incident to make SEBA officials to hang their heads in shame, wanton cows destroyed hundreds of answerscripts inside a strong room in Golapara on Friday.
The incident took place at the Goalpara Govt HS School on Friday morning when examiners spotted a heard of wanton cows destroying many answer scripts inside the strong room.
According to information, the caretaker of the of centre left the strong room without properly shutting the door which is why, the cows managed to storm into the room. Investigation is going on.
Assam remains alert in view of the ULFA 'Raising Day' on Saturday.
Security forces have been deployed to thwart any attempt by ULFA in the vulnerable areas of Tinsukia, Sibsagar, Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Dhubri, Goalpara and Nalbari districts.
According to inputs available Commander in Chief Paresh Baruah has dispatched his wife Rinku Bhuyan and hardcore ULFA cadre Rajiv Das to carry out strike in Lakhimpur district.
Security forces have arrested a hardcore ULFA cadre from Kokrajhar district on Friday. Acting on a tip off, security men caught him from Fakiragram market area in the wee hours.
The ULFA cadre has been identified as Biju Roy and they also recovered one 9mm pistol, three rounds of ammunition and one mobile from his possession.
Police seized a hand made gun and 14 rounds of live ammunition from a residence in the Gohpur area of Sonitpur district on Friday.
The gun and live ammunition belong to the owner of the house, identified as one Lakhya Pegu, police said adding that Pegu was absconding.
In yet another development Aditya Baruah has safely arrived in his home ending a high voltage drama. He was missing since NIA raided his rented room in New Delhi in search of ULFA leader Aronodoi Dohotia.
Heartcare at affordable cost! courtesy Ayursundra. The Guwahati-based healthcare provider group is set to spread the concept of specialised heart care units in hospitals across the state.
This will provide the latest treatment at affordable price. The model is based on the concept of 'Hospital Within a Hospital' and consists of having a Cath Lab, an ICU, monitoring system and other associated machines for dealing with emergencies as well as comprehesive treatment of heart ailments.
Eight labourers are still remaining traceless even 24 hours after they were kidnapped from a construction site by KPLT militants in Karbi Anglong district.
Security forces are launching combing operation to trace out the workers. But there is no report of any breakthrough.
A group of about four heavily armed militants stormed into a hospital building at Rongbong Ghat on Thursday night and took away eight of them at gunpoint.
One person died on the spot and 31 others were injured, six of them seriously, in a road mishap in Barpeta district on Friday.
The driver of a passenger bus travelling from Barpeta to Barpeta Road lost control and overturned on the National Highway 31. While a passenger, Kamal Barma, died on the spot, 31 others were injured. Six of the seriously injured passengers were shifted to the Guwahati Medical College Hospital here.
Veteran CPI leader Pramod Gogoi is dead. He passed away at a private hospital in Guwahati where he was admitted two days back. The end came at around 10-30 in the morning.
Gogoi was born and brought up in Sivasagar. A bachelor Gogoi was elected to state legislative assembly from Sivasagar constituency for several time. More, he was flood control minister in the AGP led coalition government under the chief ministership of Prafulla Kumar Mahanta.
Political leaders across the state have condoled his untimely demise and conveyed their deep sympathies to his bereaved family members.
Three suspected GNLA militants were killed at an encounter with security forces in Golapara on Thursday.
The encounter took place in the wee hours at Mendipothar bordering Meghalaya where the armed GNLA cadres were moving despite alertness of security forces in the area. The cadres were yet to be identified. The Garo insurgent cadres have been unleashing terror in Mendipothar in the form of extortion, killing and kidnapping forcing the security forces to launch the operation.
The Centre sounds alert in Assam and its neighbouring states in view of ULFA Raising Day slated for April 8.
Dispur received the Home Ministry advisory on Wednesday with directives to tighten security across the region.
The Home Ministry asked the Assam government and the neighbouring states to be on alert in the run-up to the ULFA raising day on April 7 when the group usually tries to launch terror attacks.
The Centre advised the states to deploy adequate security personnel at sensitive locations, oil installations, railway tracks and stations, bus terminus, markets and religious places to foil any attempt by the insurgents to disturb peace.
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