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.
Atleast ten people were killed, more than 40 others have been injured in the communal clash that broke out between Bodos and Bangladeshi immigrants at Rowta in lower Assam’s Udalguri areas. Security forces have been deployed in the area but by the evening the situation has already spanned out of control.The flare-up broke out on Friday morning and by the evening it was spreading to the adjacent areas Ikarabari, Sonepur, Lalding, Shivpur, Shyambari and Bothaipara under the Rowta Police station forcing thousands of people in the area to leave their house. As many as ten villages have been torched belonging to both the communities. According to information, these people are camping in...
One person was killed more than twenty five others have been injured and three villages have been torched in a fresh string of communal violence that rocked lower Assam’s Udalguri district on Friday.According to information, the communal clash broke out in Mohanpur area inhibited by Muslim and Bodo people in the morning and later it is spreading to the adjacent areas forcing to step in. Police resorted to firing the disperse the mob but by then the situation was spanning out of control.Muslim people in large number came out openly against the Bodos and the Bodos are also in a retaliation mood. The houses reduced to ashes belonging to the people of both the communities.The condition of...
Veteran freedom fighter Powal Barua will attend the 'Guest of the Month' programme of Guwahati Press Club tomorrow (2nd October). During the program, staring at 12 noon in the GPC auditorium, Barua, 85, will interact with the member-journalists. The GPC members are requested to attend the same.
Altogether 305 rebels of the United Liberation Front of Barak Valley laid down their arms before the authority in Assam at function organized in the city on Tuesday.Led by their President Pancharam Apeto, the rebels surrendered before Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, who welcomed the move and asked ULFA to follow the suit.The rebels received a bunch of rose each when they laid down their arms and ammunition including three AK-47 rifles and .22 rifles, one m-16 rifle, dbbl gun, .32 pistol and .22 pistol, four .303 rifles, 60 twelve-bore guns, seven 9mm pistols, two 2-inch launchers, four each of single shot revolvers and grenades and two mortars.They further submitted 158 AK-series ammunition,...
The human rights violation cases in Assam has even reached international scene when the state’s lawyer and human rights activist and PCG spokesman Arup Borbora was participating the recent conference of the Human rights Commission under the United Nations.Addressing a press conference in the city on Tuesday, Borbora said 40 countries who participated in the conference organized by a London based organisation Libertion, expressed solidarity with the human rights violation cases in south east Asian counties more specifically in Assam.Borbora said while interacting in the the September 16 conference presided over by Interpret International chairman Dr Charles Gery, he raised the...
A suspected ULFA rebel died at a joint operation by police and Army in upper Assam's Sivasagar district on Tuesday morning. According to information, acting on a specific information, Army's 318 Field Regiment jawans and Charaideo police launched the operation at Rangalibatuwa area under Kakotibari police station in the district at around 3 in the morning. The rebel who died on the spot has yet to be identified. Police recovered a 9mm pistol, a magazine, three rounds of live ammunition, four electric detonators, some explosive materials and PEF sticks. Details are awaited.
At least 300 rebels belonging to the United Liberation Front of Barak Valley will surrender at a function in Guwahati a short while from now.According to information, these rebels will also deposit thier arms and ammunitions before the authority a the function being organised at the Machkhowa ITA Centre.
“There is no meeting of minds, no point of understanding with terrorism. Just a choice: Defeat it or be defeated by it.”– Tony Blair (Former PM of Britain)“Do not yield. Do not flinch. Stand up. Stand up with our President and fight (terrorism). We’re Americans. We’ll never surrender.” – John McCain (US Senator)The burning of coach no. S-6...
BJP’s prime ministerial candidate L K Advani makes a clarion call for the people of Assam to favour his party to help the state bail out of the problems confronting the state for decades.Addressing a mammoth gathering at the Sonaram Field on Sunday, the BJP veteran said Assam is plagued by two main problems. One he said is the Bangladeshi infiltrators who has been posing a serious threat to the nation’s integrity. “This has already disturbed the region’s demographic set up,” said Advani. For the former deputy prime minister, the next is the flood waves that remain a perennial problem. Over the years, the UPA government in Delhi has been failing to deliver the...
The Opposition Asom Gana Parishad pins hope on help from BJP L K Advani to steal the show in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.Talking to Assam Times, senior AGP leaders said they will be holding a crucial meeting with Advani on Sunday afternoon at the Hotel Brahmaputra to finalise the poll pact. The details of the meeting have already been chalked out on Saturday afternoon when BJP's Assam unit leaders hold talks with AGP leaders. Notably, the AGP-BJP poll pact has reached a crucial stage and barring a few seats, seat sharing has almost completed.
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