Demand to Revoke MoU to Set Up Tipaimukh Project

Imphal, Feb 13 : Renewing their stand against the construction of the Tipaimukh project, various anti-dam bodies of the region called upon the government to revoke the Memoramdum of Understanding (MoU) signed to set up the 1500 MW project over Barak river in Manipur's Churachandpur district bordering Mizoram on Saturday.

The Mou was signed between the state government, National Hydroelectric Project (NHPC) and the Satluj Vudyut Nigam Limited on April 28, 2010 and reaffirmed on October 21 last year. During his Imphal visit on December 3, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said environmental clearance for the project had been granted and forest clearance was under process.

A seven-point resolution that included revocation of the environmental clearance on the proposed project granted by the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) on October 28, 2008 was adopted.

Organized by Committee on Land and Natural Resources (COLNER), Citizens' Concern for Dams and Development (CCDD), Action Committee Against Tipaimukh Dam (ACTIP), North East Dialogue Forum (NEDF) and the Sinlung Indigenous Peoples Human Rights Organizations (SIPHRO), the review meeting urged the government to take the consent of all the affected people as recommended by the UN CERD committee before beginning construction of the Tipaimukh dam and conduct impact assessment in all the portion of the Barak river in Manipur, Mizoram, Assam and Bangladesh.