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.
Asom Gana Parishad president Prafulla Kumar Mahanta on Sunday took on Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi charging his successor with playing politics by raising the 'secret killings' card. “I want to ask how many innocent persons have lost their lives during the last 11 years of his government," Mahanta said when he was addressing a press conference in Guwahati on Sunday.
The former chief minister said that it was the AGP-led government, which ruled Assam between 1996 and 2001, had formed a commission under Justice S Haque to investigate the killings when scores of people, including relatives of ULFA leaders, were killed by unknown gunmen.
According to Mahanta, “Gogoi must take the...
Properties worth Rs 50 lakh along with some important official documents were reduced to ashes when a devastating fire broke in the office-cum-residence of Upper Assam Commissioner in Jorhat district on Sunday.The fire broke out in the residence of the first floor of the bungalow of Iftikar Hussain at Cinamora following a shortcircuit at around 12:15 pm and soon spread to the ground floor where the office was located.
Official documents along with furniture and other valuables have been damaged in the fire though the resident staff managed to escape. The extent of damage was yet to be ascertained.
Twelve fire tenders rushed to the spot to douse the blaze and more are being rushed from...
Police arrested two youths in Tamulpur on Saturday when they were carrying explosive to Kokrajhar.In a sensational revelation, the duo known to be from an insurgent outfit, procured grenades from an army jawan in Darrangimela. They procured explosives to be deposited before the authorities at a surrender ceremony. Police arrested the duo on their way to Kokrajhar from Darranga.
A local resident along the Indo-Bangla border is understood to have committed suicide after he was declared a doubtful voter. He was not given the form for voter photo identity card in Cachar district.He was identified as Arjun Namasudra, a 32-year old resident of Indo-Bangla border village Haritikar part-I who hanged himself on Friday after a case was filed against him in the Foreigners' Tribunal alleging that he was a doubtful citizen.Namasudra's wife, Basana claimed that he had got the notice twice from the Tribunal but could not appear as he was a poor daily wage worker and had no money to pay the lawyers.
Assam has welcomed the recent assurance of Myanmar government to flush out North East-based militant groups camping in the neighbouring country.Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi told reporters in Dispur on Saturday that the Myanmar government has assured Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that no shelter would be provided to the militant groups mongering trouble in the north east.He, however, said that there was no formal communication received so far by his office from the Centre.
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Saturday said that the government was fully prepared to ensure safe passage of al’l materials to the NHPC-owned big dam site in Gerukamukh. Talking to reporters in Guwahati he said that NHPC workers engaged in the construction of Lower Subansiri Hydroelectric project (LSHP) would get full security.He, further, said that an expert committee will be formed soon to study its downstream impact. Work on the project has come to a halt since December following vehement protests by anti-dam agitators and NHPC Executive Director Rakesh has urged Assam and Arunachal Pradesh governments to provide security.
Security forces arrested two militants along the Indo-Bhutan border in lower Assam on Saturday.The duo were held during a joint operation the Sashastra Seema Bal SSB and police from Kumarikata area near the Indo-Bhutan border.Both they a residents of Tamarhat in neighbouring north Bengal belong to little known Santhal National Liberation.
The failure to beckon mega big ticket investment on industrial front has forced the Assam government to think of the small and cottage industries.Talking to reporters in Guwahati on Saturday, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said that he took up the matter with the Planning Commission on his recent visit to Delhi where he argued that there was no dearth of small units giving employment opportunity in village areas.According to him, transport subsidy was available for the big industry for transportation of raw material and finished products to Northeast. H said that the same is not available to small industry located in interior areas.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice on Friday said that Assam’s overall performance on Supreme Court guidelines to prevent harassment of women at the workplace is very impressive.
Talking to reporters in Guwahati during the two days visit to state, Chairman of the Committee Shantaram Naik said that different organisations in the state were complying with the supreme court. He further said that the Supreme Court guidelines would remain in force till the legislation on Protection of Women Against Sexual Harassment at Workplace Bill, 2010, which is currently pending in Parliament, becomes a law.
The seven-member committee was...
The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation has claimed to have discovered a new oil well in the in Golaghat district. The oil giant said that the new well has been spotted in Chalukpather area in the district bordering Nagaland. Public sector energy giant ONGC has started drilling oil along the inter-state border between Assam and Nagaland in both Jorhat and Golaghat districts.
ONGC officials said that the Navaratna company would be paying royalty to Assam for its work along the border. The oil major has 42 oil wells in both Jorhat and Golaghat district which fall under the Jorhat sector of the company. According to ONGC, operations in Upper Assam have resulted in significant development of the...
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