Rally against Tipaimukh project in the national capital

New Delhi, June 7 (UNI) The Action Committee Against Tipaimukh Project (ACTIP) today staged a protest rally opposing the construction of the dam at the confluence of the rivers Barak and Tuivai in Manipur.

The activists, mostly from the North East, marched with placards from Mandi House to Parliament Street to hand over a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The 1,500-mw Tipaimukh hydroelectric plant is to come up at the confluence of the Tuivai and Barak rivers adjoining the international border with Sylhet in Bangladesh.

The memorandum demanded scrapping of the dam project, as they contended that it will submerge more than 311 sq. km of Tamenlong and Churachandpur districts. A 60 km-long stretch of NH-53 was also under threat and it would render thousands of people homeless and bereft of economic stability.

Seismologists opine that the dam site is a major earthquake prone area as North Eastern India is one of the six major seismological active zone of the world, the memorandum added.

According to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, this project is not economically viable as admitted by North East Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO), the activists said.

The Manipur Assembly had passed a resolution not to implement the decison to construct the dam. However, during President's rule in 2001, the Governor-in-Council approved the project.

Speaking on the occasion, spokesperson Roy Laifungbam demanded that the Centre scrap the Tipaimukh dam project in the interest of the people of the North East.

"We will be rendered homeless devoid of occupation if the dam is being built because there is no land for rehabilitation as a vast area is covered by forests. We urge the Centre to take immediate steps to ensure safety and security of the people of the region," Mr Oinam Bikramjit from Tamenglong district said.

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