Decommission Rangadi Dam: AASU

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, July 17: The All Assam Students’ Union (AASU) has raised its demand for the decommissioning of NEEPCO’s Rangadi power project. The release of water from the project without any prior notice did create havoc in Lakhimpur, Majuli and various other areas in the State during this wave of floods.

AASU general secretary Lurinjyoti Gogoi told the media on Monday that the release of water from a 405-MW NEEPCO project created havoc in the downstream in Assam. “Thus one may surmise what the situation will be if water is released from the under construction 2000-MW Lower Subansiri Hyro Electrict Project. The design of the project is in an outdated one now. The State Governor said recently that the project is safe, but he’s not an expert. He should make comments only after a thorough study. Let Union Power Minister Piyush Goel come and see the damage done by the water of Rangadi dam. It breached the embankment at Bogulijan. The people of Lakhimpur district demand a Central package amounting to Rs 1,000 crore. We demand Rs 5,000 crore for Lakhimpur and rest of the State. Let Dispur that can spend crores of rupees for mami Brahmaputra make public how much it can spend to prevent floods and erosion in the State. Let it declare floods and erosion as a tiol problem.”

Meanwhile, the AASU is set for a statewide demonstration on July 19 in support of its demands for adequate relief, baby food, heath care and rehabilitation for flood-affected people etc.

AASU president Dipanko Kumar th, on the other hand, said: “Dispur claims to have adequate funds, but the fact remains that the affected people aren’t getting adequate relief. There are many places where relief materials haven’t reached as yet. The Centre hasn’t taken any step to declare floods and erosion in Assam as a tiol problem. Such injustice won’t be tolerated anymore.”