Stung by this decision, Narmata Bachao Andolan (NBA) activists, looking for reasons behind Manmohan Singh's intervention in the “unviable" project, allege that it was cleared on the basis of false declarations of the Madhya Pradesh government about resettlement and rehabilitation (R&R) and financial irregularities on the part of the project promoters. “Shree Maheshwar Hydel Power Corporation Limited (SMHPCL), promoters of this project, have not complied with the conditions of environmental clearance, especially those relating to R&R of the affected people," say NBA activists Chittaroopa Palit and Alok Agrawal.
The Maheshwar hydel dam has been at the nucleus of a decades-old agitation. The dam was cleared by the MoEF in 2001 and is slated to deliver 400 MW of power and supply drinking water to Indore. In February 2010, the ministry stopped construction of the final set of the five gates in the dam because of poor progress on rehabilitation of about 9,400 families. Read the full report here.
Source: Babu Umar, Correspondent, Tehelka.
