NGOs oppose hydel projects in Uttarakhand
Shishir Prashant, New Delhi/ Dehradun, 15 Jul 2008
The hydel projects in Uttarakhand, which were opposed by environmentalist G D Agrawal, are facing legal battle launched by NGOs. The Indian Council of Enviro-Legal Action has filed a petition seeking stopping of the construction of dams between Uttarkashi and Gangotri in the Uttarakhand High Court.
The council also sought for the court’s direction to restore the natural flow of the Bhagirathi and declare the area a national heritage site, saying these dams will destroy the precious bio-diversity of the river.
To counter this, RLEK, a Dehradun-based NGO, has also filed a counter petition in the High Court seeking direction to the state government to restart the construction of two major hydel projects — 480 Mw Pala Maneri and 400 Mw Bhairon Ghati on the Bhagirathi river.
RLEK in its petition alleged that the state government halted the construction of these projects under pressure from various religious groups and has blatantly acted in violation of its own policy regarding hydro-electricity generation.
RLEK also said that the shortage of electricity in the state would adversely affect the growth of industries and in turn will lead to loss of employment opportunities.
The government had suspended the construction of two hydel projects following the lingering controversy over indefinite fast by Agrawal with the Sangh Parivar outfits also lending their full support last month.
Both the projects — Pala Maneri and Bhairon Ghati — were allotted to the state-owned Uttarakhand Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (UJVNL). An investment of nearly Rs 5,200 crore was proposed in these two projects.
Agrawal (76) had kept a fortnight-long indefinite fast to protest against the construction of a series of hydel projects as part of his save Bhagirath campaign.
The major dams, which are built on Bhagirathi include Pala Maneri (480 Mw), Lohari Nagpala (600 Mw), Bhairon Ghati (400 Mw) and Jad Ganga (200 Mw).
News Source: http://www.business-standard.com
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