TAD News Desk, New Delhi: In wake of the pandemic, when natural disasters occur more than often, it is our imperative to ensure that we take enough action to stabilize the climate change. But, it seems all government measures are bereft of this basic knowledge and they do not even try to improve. Developmental plans has carved out greedy giants, who do not learn a thing from nature’s course of climatic change. Kerala government has forgotten the theories of Gadgil, unheard the Kasturirangan’s voice and conveniently left the learning of Sastra Sahitya Parishad.
Under the Anakkayam hydro project, plans are to remove 20 acres of dense forests in the Vazhachal Forest Division, this November. Orders are to cut down 1897 and few more trees with a circumference around 740cm. This project aims to generate electricity through diverting water through tunnel and turbine from Sholayar Hydroelectric Project Powerhouse. The forest area that has been planned to be cut down, of which 15 acres fell in the buffer zone of Parambikulam Tiger Reserve. The government had estimated the budget of the project to be around 150crores in 2018. Elephants and few other animal species are endemic in this region of the forest.
A major landslide near the sanctioned project area was recorded during 2018 floods. The rehabilitation of the indigenous tribes who lost their homes during that time has not been fully done yet. Government has strict guidelines to not build homes in landslide prone areas, whereas for the project plans are to put up a blast along the length of 5km to erode the rocks, there would be further surge in landslides in the area. The risk of the nearby dwellers due to this project is heightened and to add to the misery, the project is in direct violation of the Forest Rights Act. The project does not have permission from the tribals, which is mandatory for such projects, and the government is still adamant on going through with the project.
This power plant would not be able to pay even a thousandth of the 26,000 crores of electricity annually, meaning the goal is not to solve the power shortage of the state. The state already has more power than it requires and it is unable to pay the central rates, which is cheaper. Kerala’s thermal power plants are shut and the excess power is sold to neighbouring states.
Usually, hydro projects cost in the range of 9-10crore per megawatt but the Anakkayam project takes the pricing to 20crores per megawatt. This high electricity production cost would increase the per unit price to the consumers, which would be around Rs.10/unit minimum. Kayamkulam thermal powerplant has been shut due to the production cost of 7lakhs/unit, which generates around 200 crore units of electricity.
Waxerin Perepadan, District President, while speaking on the inaugurating meeting of Tribal Resources Enlightenment Ecology Society – a state-level society working for tribal environment protection, had reiterated these same aforementioned facts.
“The project, which is expected to cover a distance of five and a half kilometers with a diameter of three and a half meters, will result in massive logging and destruction of habitats in the tribal areas, which will lead to wildlife encroachment and massive damage to crops in the hilly areas and floods,” Perapadan said.
Forest Rights Protection Acts states clearly that the government can only proceed through such projects in case all the tribal communities of the region agree to it, but the law has been blown and the watch has been given to hound dogs.
KSEB meeting attended by Advocate Sunil Dutt, Meera Nayurussery, Tom Kiran and Philip Philip spoke, presided over by Tree state president Ajit Vinayak, planned to stage protest against the economically unviable project which is destroying the environment and is unlawful.
Source –Krishi Jagran
