Bhubaneswar: Reiterating his serious concern for the adversity which the controversial Polavaram project would cause to the people of Odisha especially the primitive Tribal population in the Malkangiri district, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday made a fresh appeal to Prime Minister Narendra to stop construction of the project until all pending issues are resolved.
Patnaik, in a letter to Modi, requested him to pass directions to cancel the order by the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change (MoEF& CC) for the Polavaram project.
“The construction work of Polavaram Project is going on a war-footing basis. I wrote to you thrice mentioning that the MoEF&CC has kept the “Stop Work Order” in abeyance from time to time without informing the State of Odisha,” the CM wrote.
“In my previous letters, I had mentioned that if the project is completed before the resolution of all the pending issues, it will lead to a situation which will submerge large amount of forest area and fertile lands along with the submergence of a number of villages resulting in displacement of primitive Tribal population in the Malkangiri district in Odisha,” the CM added.
The Environmental clearance was given earlier to the Project on 25.10.2005. Due to change in the scope of the project, MoEF on February 8, 2011, directed Andhra Pradesh Government not to start construction work of Polavaram Project on the ground until a further appraisal of the project by the MoEF.
At the request of Andhra Pradesh chief minister, MoEF & CC issued abeyance on Stop Work Order for a period of six months vide their letter dated 27.02.2013. The Stop Work Order was further kept on abeyance for six months by MoEF & CC vide their letter dated 01.01.2014.
The Stop Work Order is being kept in abeyance on yearly basis from 03.07.2015 to 02.07.2016, from 03.07.2016 to 02.07.2017, from 03.07.2017 to 02.07.2018 and the latest being 03.07.2018 to 02.07.2019 referring the assurances given by the CM of Andhra Pradesh that the reservoir of the Polavaram Project will not be impounded without the permission of MoEF & CC and the changes in the design parameters of the Project will be taken care of based on the result of Public Hearing.
“In this context, it is not understood how the impounding of the reservoir will not take place once the project is completed. Further, it is to mention that it will not be possible to change the Design and operating parameters of the Polavaram Project after the completion of Project, as the media reports say that the project is likely lobe completed is the earlier pot of the year 2019 as per the statement of CM of Andhra Pradesh,” the CM said.
The CM said the public hearing in Odisha has not been carried out fill date. The area where the public hearing has to be carried out depends on the exact extent of submergence in different areas lying in the Malkangiri District of Odisha. A detailed study of Design flood and the studies related to the backwater tent during floods will allow to make an assessment about the exact submergence in Odisha.
Based on these studies only, the extent of submergence of forests, fertile lands and number of villages to be submerged, can be assessed. Without carrying out these studies and providing the information to affected persons, no meaningful public hearing or public consultation can take place, he said.
“I am constrained to write this letter to draw your personal attention and intervention on the magnitude of the consequences that the people of Odisha will have to face viz. the submergence of tribal villages resulting in mass displacement of Tribals, the flooding of fertile agricultural lands and submergence of large forest area, all of which can be avoided if only an opportunity is given for a final resolution of the disputes pending before the Supreme Court,” the CM stated in the letter.
The CM suggested that the Polavaram Project can be reformulated as per GWDT award without causing large-scale submergence in Odisha, Telangana, and Chhattisgarh. “If the project is allowed to be completed before the resolution of all the pending issues, it will cause permanent injury to the interest of Odisha and its people,” he added.
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Ms Kalinga