Centre keeping Assam in the dark on Siang project: Gogoi

By Our Staff Reporter

Guwahati, June 5: Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today reiterated that the Government of Assam is for the welfare of the people and will never endorse any project that does not benefit the people at large.

Chief Minister Gogoi while reacting to reports appearing in a section of media, said that the Centre has not arrived at a consensus with the Government of Assam regarding the Middle Siang Project and has not even discussed the issue with the State government. “The present State government always stands for the welfare of the people and it accords topmost priority to their hopes and aspirations,” Gogoi said, adding, “We have not received any formal communication from the Centre regarding construction of the proposed Middle Siang Project”.

Meanwhile, Minister for Water Resources Basanta Das also reiterated that the Centre’s claim of building consensus with the Government of Assam on the 1,000 MW Middle Siang Hydroelectric Project is completely baseless and concocted.

He also said that the Ministry of Water Resources has not made any correspondence regarding the issue with the State and no formal consent was given from his department to the project.

The All Assam Students Union has also opposed the project, reiterating its demand for a scientific study on the impact of the proposed dams in Aruchal Pradesh. “We won’t allow execution of mega hydel project in Aruchal Pradesh if the government does not first undertake a scientific research on their impacts,” the AASU said in a statement.

Union Minister for Water Resources Uma Bharti had yesterday said that the proposed Middle Siang project is going to be the answer for permanent solution to the perennial flood problem of Assam and Aruchal Pradesh.