Environmental group condemns police firing in Kinnuar

Shimla, Dec 12 (UNI) An environmentalist group today condemned police firing on the villagers protesting the construction of the 1,000 MW Karcham Wangtoo in Kinnuar district of Himachal Pradesh and said clearance to the project was in violation of the PESA Act.

''The Union Environmental Ministry's clearance to the hydel project is in violation of the Panchayat Extension to Schedule Areas (PESA) Act and Schedule Five of the Constitution,'' Himalayan Niti Abhiyan Samiti President Kulbhusan Upmanyu said at a press conference here.

Under the PESA Act, allotment of land in the tribal areas was not possible without the clearance from the concerned Gram Sabha, while special treatment to the tribal areas of the state under Schedule Five was not being given in this case, he said.

Mr Upmanyu said while the 12 out of a total of 14 Gram Sabhas were yet to give their consent for setting up the project, the Union Environment Ministry has cleared the project for execution.

In this case, the Central Government was violating the laws framed by it by giving clearance to the hydel project without getting it from the bottom most clearing authority, he said.

He said clearance for the project in this case had not yet been received from defence and tribal ministry despite the environment impact assessment (EIA) report, advising the shifting of several defence establishments from the area.

Since the project was coming up in the tribal areas, the Union Tribal Ministry approval for the project had also not be taken, he said.

UNI AS HS VN SY RN1840