Times of India

SILCHAR: A number of social organizations on Saturday staged a one-day sit-in demonstration in front of the Cachar deputy commissioner's office demanding the proposal to construct the 1500 MW Tipaimukh hydro-electricity project on Barak River be scrapped. They also wanted scrapping of other mega dam projects in the region including the 2500 MW Lower Subanshiri hydro electricity project near the Assam-Arunachal border.

The NGOs, including Committee on People and Environment (COPE), Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), All Assam Manipuri Students Union (AAMSU) and Barak Valley Human Rights Protection Committee (BVHRPC) also sent a memorandum to the Prime Minister through the DC urging him to take necessary steps to scrap the big dam projects keeping in mind their adverse impact on environment and human life.

"The dams have been planned at the confluence of Indo-Burma, Indo-Malayan and Indo-Chinese biodiversity hotspot zones. These areas are characterized by the presence of a large number plant and animal species, many of which are not seen or in rest of the world. Some of the species are endangered and threatened. The dams would push them to extinction," the memorandum said.

The NGOs also said that many of the tribals, including Hmar, Naga, Kuki, Manipuri and others, who have been living here for generations, will be uprooted if the dams are constructed, they added.

The memorandum also mentioned that the proposed 500-metre-long and 181-metre-high Tipaimukh dam at the earthquake zone-V will cause harm to all the downstream areas.