OFFICIALS POINT OUT THAT POWER DEVELOPMENT BEING A STATE SUBJECT, FINAL CALL WILL REST WITH STATE GOVT
GANGTOK, 20 Oct: While news-reports coming out of New Delhi, as well as the SIBLAC, suggest that the Central government has instituted a high powered committee to look into religious and cultural concerns raised by SIBLAC and NASBO over the development of three hydel projects in West Sikkim, the State government claims that it is unaware of any such move by the centre. What is more, officials point out that hydel power development being a State matter, the role and jurisdiction of a committee instituted by the Centre was also not very clear.
Official sources inform that the State government has not been intimated yet of the formulation of any such committee by the Central government, particularly by the Ministry of Home Affairs [which, as per media reports, has instituted the committee] to assess the religious and cultural implications of the three projects.
It might also be recalled that of the three hydel projects in question – Lethang, Ting-Ting and Tashiding – only the latter two have been cleared for development thus far, with clearance held back for the Lethang HEP.
Officials here emphasize that such development of power projects is completely a state subject and that it was the state government which was the final authority on such matters; meaning, after all required formalities have been completed, the final decision on whether to go ahead or not with any hydel project rested with the State government. Tseten Tashi, Convenor, SIBLAC when contacted on this questioned as to what all the Forest and Environment related central Acts stood for by which the state had to obtain clearances to go ahead with the projects.
In such a scenario where the state claims final authority, the very basis and objective of forming such a central committee comes into question, apart from the fact that such should also be communicated to the State government.
It was also informed that the Rathong Chu, on which the three HEPs are to be developed, has not been listed as a sacred river by the State government.
In fact, not just the State government, even the private power developers commissioned to develop the said projects denied any knowledge of such a committee.
An official representing Shige and TT Energy Private Limited, the company developing the Tashiding and Ting-Ting hydel projects in West Sikkim, when contacted, stated that they had no knowledge of any such committee nor was there any intimation to them from either the State or the Central governments on the matter.
On the other hand, officials did acknowledge that several representations had been made to the State government as well as to the Centre by SIBLAC and other organizations raising concerns about erosion and disturbance of certain religious and cultural symbols attached with the Rathong Chu.
In this regard, the Minority Commission had also written to the State government to look into the issues raised.
While the 96 MW Lethang HEP has not been granted a no objection certificate by the National Wildlife Board, the other two have obtained environment clearance. The National Wildlife Board had rejected the project proposal for the Lethang HEP in November 2010. As for the other two projects, they are in the initial stages of acquiring land, it is informed.
The national media had reported that the MHA had decided to institute a committee comprising of the Secretaries of Power, Culture and Environment & Forest Ministries for a detailed assessment of ground reality issues raised by NASBO and SIBLAC so as to protect the overall religious and cultural diversity of the region.
GANGTOK, 20 Oct: While news-reports coming out of New Delhi, as well as the SIBLAC, suggest that the Central government has instituted a high powered committee to look into religious and cultural concerns raised by SIBLAC and NASBO over the development of three hydel projects in West Sikkim, the State government claims that it is unaware of any such move by the centre. What is more, officials point out that hydel power development being a State matter, the role and jurisdiction of a committee instituted by the Centre was also not very clear.
Official sources inform that the State government has not been intimated yet of the formulation of any such committee by the Central government, particularly by the Ministry of Home Affairs [which, as per media reports, has instituted the committee] to assess the religious and cultural implications of the three projects.
It might also be recalled that of the three hydel projects in question – Lethang, Ting-Ting and Tashiding – only the latter two have been cleared for development thus far, with clearance held back for the Lethang HEP.
Officials here emphasize that such development of power projects is completely a state subject and that it was the state government which was the final authority on such matters; meaning, after all required formalities have been completed, the final decision on whether to go ahead or not with any hydel project rested with the State government. Tseten Tashi, Convenor, SIBLAC when contacted on this questioned as to what all the Forest and Environment related central Acts stood for by which the state had to obtain clearances to go ahead with the projects.
In such a scenario where the state claims final authority, the very basis and objective of forming such a central committee comes into question, apart from the fact that such should also be communicated to the State government.
It was also informed that the Rathong Chu, on which the three HEPs are to be developed, has not been listed as a sacred river by the State government.
In fact, not just the State government, even the private power developers commissioned to develop the said projects denied any knowledge of such a committee.
An official representing Shige and TT Energy Private Limited, the company developing the Tashiding and Ting-Ting hydel projects in West Sikkim, when contacted, stated that they had no knowledge of any such committee nor was there any intimation to them from either the State or the Central governments on the matter.
On the other hand, officials did acknowledge that several representations had been made to the State government as well as to the Centre by SIBLAC and other organizations raising concerns about erosion and disturbance of certain religious and cultural symbols attached with the Rathong Chu.
In this regard, the Minority Commission had also written to the State government to look into the issues raised.
While the 96 MW Lethang HEP has not been granted a no objection certificate by the National Wildlife Board, the other two have obtained environment clearance. The National Wildlife Board had rejected the project proposal for the Lethang HEP in November 2010. As for the other two projects, they are in the initial stages of acquiring land, it is informed.
The national media had reported that the MHA had decided to institute a committee comprising of the Secretaries of Power, Culture and Environment & Forest Ministries for a detailed assessment of ground reality issues raised by NASBO and SIBLAC so as to protect the overall religious and cultural diversity of the region.
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