Satluj Bachao jan Sangharsh Samiti, District Mandi organised a peaceful rally today at their tehsil headquarters Karsog today on 28th March 2012. The Sangharsh Samiti submitted a memorandum raising various issues and concerns against the World Bank funded 775 Luhri Hydro-electric Project proposed to be built on the Satluj river, to the President of India, via SDM Karsog and the MoEF,s Expert Appraisal Committee, which is going to consider environment clearance to Luhri HEP in its meeting on 30th and 31st March, 2012.Local people came in large numbers to register their opposition to the tunnel model proposed for Luhri HEP.
Nek Ram Sharma, the Secretary of the sangharsh samiti said, “we have just come back from a trip to the affected areas of karchham Wangtoo and Rampur HEP’s – 2 projects that have been built just above Luhri project – and we are shocked to see the deva station caused during construction phase of Rampur HEP and the losses being suffered by people of Kinnaur, after the Karchham Wangtoo HEP has been constructed. The entire area is dotted with dumping sites, and the regular flow of trucks with dumping material has made life hell for the local people.”
Shyam Singh Chauhan, President of the Sangharsh Samiti added, ” we do not want that our area also faces devastation as caused by earlier projects above Luhri. We demand that the government scrap the tunnel model of Luhri HEP and instead builds small sized power projects, which do not have such large scale impacts on local environment and people’s lives.”
The rally was attended by women from the villages of Shaut, Naanj, Tebban, Sarahan, Baalidhaar, Khadra, Kotlu of Mandi district who raised various slogans like “luhri ka surang praroop band karo” and “paani bachao pahad bachao manav bachao”.
For more details contact info@himdhara.org
Copy of Memorandum submitted on 28th March 2012
