Kejriwal says lack of transparency in big dam projects

Guwahati: Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal today said big dam projects in Assam and the North East had been taken up without transparency and called for people’s participation in decision making. “We are not against building dams per se for power generation. But the process has to be transparent and any such projects should be taken up only with the consent of the local and affected people,” Kejriwal told a meeting of the Krishak Mutki Sangram Samiti. [caption id=“attachment_323763” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“He asked the KMSS activists and their leader Akhil Gogoi to unite with other such movement. Agencies”]  [/caption] “Village parishads should be involved in decision making process and the matter should not be kept confined to board rooms only,” he said. He asked the KMSS activists and their leader Akhil Gogoi to unite with other such movements in states like Uttarakhand and create a nation-wide movement. “People of Assam will become destitutes and pay a heavy price… They will get nothing out of the dams,” Kejriwal said. He said that many expert groups formed by the Centre have expressed reservations about the dam projects including the 2,000 MW Lower Subansiri Project in Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border. “The north eastern region is located in a seismologically active and ecologically fragile area. Any big dams could have serious repercussions in case of earthquake or other such incidents,” Kejriwal said. PTI