GUWAHATI, Oct 25 � At least 50 of the Arunachal Pradesh hydroelectric projects have been granted first stage environmental clearance called �scoping clearance.� Seven large hydroelectric projects in that state, including the 1750-MW Demwe Lower Project, were granted final environmental clearance till March last. The Government of the neighbouring state has so far signed MoUs for 132 hydroelectric projects with different agencies. It is now trying every trick, including that of the �strategic importance to establish India�s first user rights,� to get the projects cleared by the Central Government.
Of the projects for which the MoUs have been signed, 40 are small ones with installed capacity of each being less than 25 MW and the rest are large ones with the generating capacity of each being above 25 MW. These include the 23 projects that are described to be the mega ones. Since in the case of NE region the hydel projects with generating capacity of 300 MW or above are considered mega ones, the number of mega hydel projects in Arunachal may go up.
In the scoping stage, a project can be rejected if felt that the site is inappropriate. But none of the Arunachal projects that have been granted such a clearance, has been rejected as yet. If not rejected, the project can be granted Terms of Reference (ToR) for conduct of EIA studies and pre-construction clearance to carry out pre-construction activities like geological testing, hydrological testing, preparation of DPR, etc.
The Arunachal Pradesh Government is very much active these days to get all the projects cleared by the Central Government. Chief Minister of the neighbouring state Dorjee Khandu is writing letters frequently to the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) and the Prime Minister�s Office (PMO) pleading for urgent steps to clear the projects expeditiously in the �larger interest of nation.�
He has not left out any point in this respect. In his October 11 letter to the MoEF, the Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister argued that all major rivers of Arunachal Pradesh originate in China and flow to India. The Chinese South to North Water Diversion (SNWD) Project has led to the speculation that China can divert the Yarlong/Siang before it enters India.
Therefore, he pleaded that speedy implementation of hydroelectric power projects on the rivers like the Siang, Subansiri, Lohit, etc., was of strategic importance to establish India�s first user rights. �It is needless to mention that any undue delay in statutory clearances will affect the nation�s interest adversely,� said Khandu.
He also informed the MoEF that his Government had targeted to start implementation of the hydroelectric power projects with the total capacity of 15,000 MW, by December next.
