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.
Assam gives raw deal to PA Sangma in the recent Presidential polls. Pranab Mukherjee gets overwhelming support from the state. Mukherjee got 110 votes in the 126-member Assembly. Sangma got 13 votes only. Two votes were invalid while one did not cast his vote. In terms of vote value, Mukherjee got 12,760 while Sangma got 1,508. The boxes were flown to Delhi on Friday and the results were announced on Sunday.
Simmering violence in Kokrajhar is spreading beyond the district to the neighbouring Chirang on Sunday. Two persons shot dead in a fresh orgy of violence. The shoot out took place at 7-30 in the afternoon. Unidentified miscreants fired at Mongolian Bazaar in Bijni town of Chirang this evening killing two persons. A vehicle was also set ablaze in the district. Top ranked police officials rushed to the spot and additional security forces are arriving in the town to rein in the situation.
The death toll in Kokrajhar rose to 15 on Sunday. Three more bodies, including of a woman and her child, were recovered from the banks of river Gouranga while another body was recovered from Kathalbari area. Night curfew was reimposed from the evening on Sunday with Section 144 CrPC in force in the entire district till further orders. The violence also spread to neighbouring Chirang district where a vehicle was burnt. Strict vigil was kept in sensitive pockets and already six additional companies deployed with three more on way. The district and police administration of the neighbouring districts have also been asked to be vigilant.
Violence in Kokrajhar and its adjoining areas escalated on Sunday. The death toll has also mounted to 15 in the trouble-torn district. A senior police official and three others have been injured at a mob attack on police convoy.The attack on the senior police official took place when DIG S Kumar and Kokrajhar Additional Superintendent of Police Amar Choudhury were on a stock taking visit to Fakiragram area.
An irate mob blocked the convoy demanding release of 10 people held in connection with the killing of four former BLT cadres. When they were urged to move out some of them pelted stones at the convoy. Kumar sustained injury in his head along with while two of his personal security...
To promote the importance of life skills and how youth can cope up with different problems a life skills education programme was held from 2-17 July at Dispur. The programme was organised by Organisation for Leadership Development. Students of class x and IX from Kishalaya Vidyapith, took part in the programme. The modules followed is similar to the UNFPA model which coverers 10 Core Life Skills such as Self Awareness, Effective Communication Skill, empathy, interpersonal relationship, coping with stress, coping with emotions, problem solving, decision making.The valedictory function of the life skills programme was held on 22nd July at Bhogeswari Phukanani Indoor Stadium, Dispur Mr....
AASU activists across the state blocked roads and burnt effigies of Railway Minister Mukul Roy on Saturday in protest against the Bihar government’s inaction to ensure justice for Pritam Bhattacharjee’s family membersHundreds of AASU activists organised demonstrations in all districts demanding CBI probe into the incident. AASU has also demanded safety of rail passengers going through Bihar. They further accused the Assam government of turning a blind eye to the issue. The body was found in a badly mutilated condition on June 16 from the railway track under Kataria over bridge, 12 km from Naugachia station in Bihar.
Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh has called upon media to act in a more balanced manner to deliver its promises. Inaugurating a Tata Consultancy Services centre in Guwahati on Saturday, he said that in negative reporting, a journalist should take into his consideration all angles which, he said, is a great responsibility. His observation assumes significance following the recent GS Road molestation episode where a journalist was arrested and an editor in chief with a TV channel wa forced to resign.
Police on Saturday got remand of Gauravjyoti Neog for three days a day after the TV journalist was arrested in the GS Road molestation case. Neog, who filmed the entire shocking incident and was accused of masterminding it, was produced before the Kamrup Chief judicial magistrate on Saturday where police sought him their remand for five days. But the magistrate allowed police to take him in their remand for 3 days.On Monday he would be produced again before the court.
The toll in Kokrajhar violence mounts to 11 on Saturday. The district administration has clamped curfew to ensure peace in the entire Kokrajhar area where three more persons killed in group clash a day after unidentified miscreants killed four ex-BLT members.The situ
ation spanned out of control as soon as unidentified miscreants killed four former BLT cadres at Joypur area on Friday night. In retaliation, unidentified persons fired killing a 60-year-old man Shahadat Hussain and injured four others in Duramari area under Kokrajhar police station early on Saturday. A 14-year old boy, Zakir Ali, was stoned to death by unidentified persons in Narabari area of Kokrajhar Road. In yet another...
Assam Chief Minister on Saturday said that vocational and skill-based training should form a compulsory part of the school curriculum. Launching a joint initiative by global education and media major Pearson and the state government to provide vocational training to school students under the proposed National Vocational Education Qualification Framework (NVEQF) in Guwahati, he said that all students should undergo minimum training in skill-based courses.
He appealed to the youths to give up disruptive politics and bandh culture and instead focus on work to increase the production forces. Under the MoU signed, Pearson will set up vocational skill centres in 10 selected government schools...
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