Alleging blatant violation of environmental norms, locals and activists have demanded cancellation of Environment Clearance (EC) of the 520 MW Tapovan-Vishnugad and 444 MW Vishnugad-Pipalkoti hydro electricity projects on the Dhauliganga and Alaknanda rivers respectively. The companies implementing these two projects are dumping muck and debris in the river in violation of environmental norms, aver the activists.
Vimal Bhai of Matu Jansangathan alleged that the companies implementing these two projects in Chamoli district are violating environmental conditions by dumping the muck and debris in the Alaknanda and Dhauliganga rivers. He said, “In the past the authorities penalised the companies which don’t seem to have any issue with paying fines. The dumping of muck and debris in the rivers is damaging the aquatic ecology and the health of the rivers. Contaminated water from a stone crusher of the 520 MW Tapovan-Vishnugad project is being drained directly into the Dhauliganga river. The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change-relying on the project proponent’s reports- has not taken any action against violation of environmental norms. The ministry has not evolved a monitoring system to keep a critical eye on environmental violations and other activities in such projects. We demand that the MoEFCC cancel the environmental clearance of Tapovan-Vishnugad and the Vishnugad-Pipalkoti power projects,” he said.
The Matu Jansangathan has also demanded that immediate action is taken to stop the dumping of muck and debris into the Alaknanda and Dhauliganga rivers by the companies, the project proponents be penalised and that the MoEFCC evolve a monitoring system to keep a critical eye on environmental violations in hydro power projects instead of relying on the project proponent’s reports, added the signatories to the demands. It is pertinent to mention here that though muck and debris during implementation of hydro electricity projects are supposed to be dumped at a designated site, the locals and activists have been complaining about these being dumped into the rivers for some years now. It has been reported in the past that dumping of debris on the banks of the Alaknanda had exacerbated the damage in downstream areas from flood in 2010. However, so far the authorities have not been successful in preventing the improper dumping.