Tipaimukh consultation passes seven resolution
Headlines 12:53
IMPHAL, July 9: A one day public consultation on “Tipaimukh Dam and Forest Clearance” organized jointly by the Citizen’s Concern for Dam and Development, Committee on Land and Natural Resources, Committee on the Protection of Natural Resources in Manipur and The Action Committee against Tipaimuk Dam Project was held at Manipur Press Club today.Speaking at the one day public consultation on “Tipaimukh Dam and Forest Clearance”, RK Ranjan, Citizen’s Concern for Dam and Development said that the construction of the Tipaimukh Hydro-eectric Project will always result in incidents like the recent Kedarnath calamity and maintained that the government should be held responsible for any such result.
He said, the Tipaimukh site falls under the earthquake prone area and as such there is a high possibility of resultant calamities in case the government continues with its construction.
There are more than 7.8 million trees and 27000 bamboo trees in the site as projected by the Forest Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forest, GoI for which the committee has already granted forest clearance of the said forest area.
He said, the committee needs to properly assess of the impact of the dam construction and reconsider the decision for Forest Clearance.He further argued that the felling of such huge numbers of trees in itself is a big lost for the state invoking natural calamities in the region.Further addressing the consultation, he said that according to the 2011-12 report of the state government on electricity, the total requirement of the state was 150 mega watt of which the state had provided only 145 mega watt with a 5 mega watt deficit, while for the year 2012-2013 the report has said that the total requirement is 250 mega watt of which 200 mega watt has been provided with a deficit of 50 mega watt.The report of the government is in total contrast to the present situation in the state, he said.
Stephen Desang of the Zaliangrong Student Union Manipur (ZSUM) said the Forest Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forest is relying on reports of a one day aerial survey by officials of Government of India and also on the request from the Government of Manipur and the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation, all of which recommended for felling 7.8 million trees and 27,000 bamboo in Manipur without proper and comprehensive impact assessment of the proposed Tipaimukh dam construction.
He further reminded the recommendation of the UN Committee on the Elimination of All forms of Racial Discrimination in 2011 on Tipaimukh Dam which says not to construct the dam without the free prior and informed consent of all affected indigenous people.During the one day public consultation on “Tipaimukh Dam and Forest Clearance”, many volunteers opposed the proposed mega dam project and said will fight for it.At the end of the consultation program seven points were recommended.The recommendations are that the Forest Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India should desist from granting Forest Clearance; the Forest Advisory Committee should also take cognizance that all Indigenous Peoples of Manipur have full rights over their lands and resources, as also recognized by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2007; the Forest Advisory Committee should refrain from making recommendations for Compensatory afforestation as Manipur is such a small State with huge pressure on land and forest already and the forest to be submerged by Tipaimukh HEP is so huge that it is irrational to compensate similar areas in other parts of Manipur with afforestation; the Ministry of Environment and Forest should recommend revoking the MoU signed on Tipaimukh Dam by the Government of Manipur with Government of Manipur, National Hydroelectric Project and Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited on 28 April 2010, reaffirmed on 22 October 20; the Ministry of Environment and Forest should recommend that the proposed Tipaimukh dam should adhere to the recommendations of the World Commission on Dams, the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous peoples and the recommendations from the UN CERD Committee in 2007.
He said, the Tipaimukh site falls under the earthquake prone area and as such there is a high possibility of resultant calamities in case the government continues with its construction.
There are more than 7.8 million trees and 27000 bamboo trees in the site as projected by the Forest Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forest, GoI for which the committee has already granted forest clearance of the said forest area.
He said, the committee needs to properly assess of the impact of the dam construction and reconsider the decision for Forest Clearance.He further argued that the felling of such huge numbers of trees in itself is a big lost for the state invoking natural calamities in the region.Further addressing the consultation, he said that according to the 2011-12 report of the state government on electricity, the total requirement of the state was 150 mega watt of which the state had provided only 145 mega watt with a 5 mega watt deficit, while for the year 2012-2013 the report has said that the total requirement is 250 mega watt of which 200 mega watt has been provided with a deficit of 50 mega watt.The report of the government is in total contrast to the present situation in the state, he said.
Stephen Desang of the Zaliangrong Student Union Manipur (ZSUM) said the Forest Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forest is relying on reports of a one day aerial survey by officials of Government of India and also on the request from the Government of Manipur and the North Eastern Electric Power Corporation, all of which recommended for felling 7.8 million trees and 27,000 bamboo in Manipur without proper and comprehensive impact assessment of the proposed Tipaimukh dam construction.
He further reminded the recommendation of the UN Committee on the Elimination of All forms of Racial Discrimination in 2011 on Tipaimukh Dam which says not to construct the dam without the free prior and informed consent of all affected indigenous people.During the one day public consultation on “Tipaimukh Dam and Forest Clearance”, many volunteers opposed the proposed mega dam project and said will fight for it.At the end of the consultation program seven points were recommended.The recommendations are that the Forest Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India should desist from granting Forest Clearance; the Forest Advisory Committee should also take cognizance that all Indigenous Peoples of Manipur have full rights over their lands and resources, as also recognized by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2007; the Forest Advisory Committee should refrain from making recommendations for Compensatory afforestation as Manipur is such a small State with huge pressure on land and forest already and the forest to be submerged by Tipaimukh HEP is so huge that it is irrational to compensate similar areas in other parts of Manipur with afforestation; the Ministry of Environment and Forest should recommend revoking the MoU signed on Tipaimukh Dam by the Government of Manipur with Government of Manipur, National Hydroelectric Project and Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited on 28 April 2010, reaffirmed on 22 October 20; the Ministry of Environment and Forest should recommend that the proposed Tipaimukh dam should adhere to the recommendations of the World Commission on Dams, the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous peoples and the recommendations from the UN CERD Committee in 2007.
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