Assam joins Manipur to decry Tipaimukh dam project

Isha Khan

Organised movement against construction of Tipaimukh Dam has begun at Cachar in the Indian state of Assam, Although there has been movement against the proposed dam in Manipur state of India for over two decades people of Cachar in Assam favoured construction of this dam.

Different environmental organisations of Cachar at a joint meeting with the Monipur groups which are opposed to the construction of the dam yesterday decided to wage movement against this project. These environmental organisations alleged that the government had given a wrong idea about the benefit of the dam to the down stream people for long, according to the BBC monitored in Dhaka yesterday.

Leader of the Anti-Tipai Dam Project Ramananda said “Down stream communities of different races and environmental organisations at yesterday’s meeting decided to join anti-dam movement. People of Barak’s upper region in Manipur have been waging movement for a long time. Anti-dam movement has begun in Bangladesh. Now the people of downstream Cachar region have joined this movement.

As a result the anti-dam movement will gain momentum and pressure will be exerted on the government to abandon this project, the BBC said.

One environmental activist of Shilchar said the proposed dam will fail to control flood. In dry season the whole Barak valley including Bangladesh will be in water crisis. Boro cultivation in the down stream region will be affected. Above all, if the dam collapses the whole downstream region will be destroyed.