Noted environmentalist Medha Patkar on Wednesday opposed construction of big dams in the North East to save the region from complete destruction. Addressing a huge rally in Guwahati, organised under the aegis of the Kisan Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS), she said the rivers must be saved at any cost.
She said the government divided people on the lines of caste and religion but now they are taking the name of development.
According to Patkar, "People want development of rivers, power, aquatic life and people of living on river banks and not just of corporate houses and a section of politicians."
The construction of dams involved scams amounting to several thousands of crore and some corporate houses and politicians were allegedly involved in this, she claimed.
She appreciated KMSS leader Akhil Gogoi for organising the rally and giving a voice to the farmers who would be the worst affected if dams are constructed on the Brahmaputra and its tributaries.
Patkar, later, fell ill and was rushed to a hospital, while leading a protest march from the Sonaram Field to the Kamrup (Metro) Deputy Commissioner's office but her condition was stated to be stable.
Meanwhile, tense situation prevailed near the Deputy Commissioner's Office when more than five thousand protestors gathered to submit a memorandum to the Prime Minister through the Deputy Commissioner. The district authorities declared the gathering illegal and asked the crowd to disperse within ten minutes. Akhil Gogoi pointed out that they had applied for necessary permission for holding a dharna at the Dispur Last Gate but was denied following they had sought permission for holding a rally at Sonaram Field and a protest march which was subsequently granted.
PermalinkSubmitted by kkp on Fri, 23/07/2010 - 20:24
@Rongmon Pegu: may be there are less money involves in wind and solar energy than in river and dam to fill the butty of our politicians and corporate houses and dalals.
PermalinkSubmitted by Himadree Buragohian on Fri, 30/07/2010 - 16:37
It is really appreciating for renowned environmentalist Medha Patkar and KMSS leader Akhil Gogoi to come out and protest for the greater welfare of the general masses who are a neglected lot by the Govt as their cries carry no meaning for the politicians and the bureaucrats.Kudos to such leaders pleading for the poor citizens.
PermalinkSubmitted by Molokhu on Sun, 08/08/2010 - 16:11
IN THE NAME OF 'USER RIGHT'
I read the news story “Chinese move on Brahmaputra: Govt action plan on user right”, reported by noted journalist Kalyan Barooah from New Delhi (‘The Assam Tribune’, Page 1; Saturday, July 24, 2010). While being in the Indian Union any small entity, be it a state, a group of people have to be vigilant against powerful forces which influence policy makers and decision takers. Unlike the fringe territories, the central mainland has a huge homogenous population, where from springs a powerful lobby which exhorts power overtly in politics and covertly in economic matters. The scene hasn’t changed much down the centuries.
When Buddhism was gaining popularity in India, the Brahmans came up with an interesting idea to retain power in the socio-economic-political and religious spheres. Gautam Buddha was shown as the ninth avatar of the Hindu mythical god of protection, Vishnu. By inducting such a tricky clause in the Purans and related religious scriptures, the identity of Buddhism as an independent religion was destroyed. Slowly Buddhism lost its grip in ancient India. Persons who constitute different policy making structures like the Committee of Secretaries (CoS) are the neo-Brahmins of modern India.
At a time when anti-dam agitation is taking the form of a mass movement, the CoS has come up with a strategy of major storage project in the three basins (which includes Subansiri, Siang and Lohit) under the disguise of a concept aptly named ‘User Right’. Whether China wants to dam or divert the Brahmaputra is not known. Whether China will or can divert the Brahmaputra is not known. Whether the story of a dam to divert the river by China is a propaganda by a section of Indian media in connivance with the Central and Corporate lobby is not known. But that the Central Governement is hand in gloves with giant corporations to exploit the hydro-power of north-eastern states is an open secret now. These power groups with an eye on profits worth billions and trillions would never sit idle over a so called storage project. Any conscious and thinking person would know what the storehouse would hold for power generators and the massive devastation that a minimal gush of water from such projects can cause downstream.
In the name of major storage project alias ‘User Right’, now India and its corporate masterminds will generate power even more than the stipulated 70,000 MWs to feed its evergrowing greed. In the national forum, mega dams are projected as ‘multi-purpose hydro-projects’. In the international forum, major storage projects will be showcased in the name of ‘User Right’ of India. It’s the formula of “Old wine in New bottle”, to fool north-eastern states and the world.
Once again a hard of wild elephants unleashed a rein of terror in Guwahati on Saturday.The terror strikes at Lakhora area where around 25 wild elephants who have come down from the nearby hills in search of food destroyed crops besides damaging several huts in the evening. A section of local residents have fled from the spot fearing attack amid darkness. Forest department was informed. Bt arrived in the spot two hours after to disperse the herd of wild elephants.
Four Dimasa insurgent activists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Dimahasao Saturday.According to information, four militants belonging to the Dimasa National Revolutionary Front were killed in an encounter at Mailoo village in Langting area during a joint operation launched by the army and police. Three AK-47 rifles with live ammunition was recovered from the ultras. In another operation, the police captured one NSCN(IN) militant from a nearby area.
AGP comes in support of PA Sangma in the country’s presidential polls slated for July 19. The regional party took the decision when it held its newly formed executive panel meeting at the Ambari-based party headquarters on Friday. The party further strongly criticized the Gogoi government alleging a string of anti-people policies.
The famed Kamakhya Temple remains closed for three days from Friday on account of Ambubachi being joined by thousands of people from the country and abroad. The temple door closed at 6:12 in the morning on Friday to reopen at 7 in the morning on June 25.
Devotees from all over the country and abroad are thronging in thousands at the temple atop the Nilachal Hills where a grand mela is underway amid tight security bandobast.
According to Kamrup (Metro) district administration, over 600 security personnel have been deployed on Nilachal Hills as more than three lakh devotees were expected to visit the temple during the three-day festival. Round the clock vigil would be maintained in and...
Speeding trains crushed to death two youths in two separate incidents on Friday. The first incident took place in the wee hours near Baihata in Kamrup(Rural) district. A youth had boarded the Dn Ernakulam Express at Guwahati and was standing near the door of a coach when he fell on the tracks near Baihata station. He died on the spot. Identified as Ujwal Paul of Nagaon, he was on the way to Kerala for a job interview.In another incident, a youth, who was trying to cross an unmanned railway crossing on his motor-bike at Koibaazar area under Gauripur police station of Dhubri district, was crushed to death by the Dhubri-Kamakhya train. The youth has been identified as Nurjamal Sheikh.
Three including two minor boys were buried alive in yet another incident of landslide that struck at a hillock in Guwahati on Friday. The incident took place at Lalunggaon in Gorchuk in the wee hours when the victims were in deep sleep. Land from the nearby collapsed the house in which they have been living in for the last six years. Local residents came to know the incident only a few hours later. They dug out the bodies and rescued others.
Hundreds of BJP activists on Friday joined the nationwide protest against the recent hike in petroleum products and inflation and participate in the 'Jail Bharo' agitation. More than twenty thousand party workers, led by party MPs and MLAs, courted arrested in the district and sub-divisional headquarters of the state. In Guwahati, party national Vice President and Guwahati Lok Sabha MP Bijoya Chakraborty led the protests and courted arrest.
National Human Rights Commission has asked Dispur to compensate the next of kin of five persons killed in an encounter with security forces on June 2009 in the state with Rs 25,000. On the basis of the post mortem and magisterial inquiry reports, and other materials on record the Commission observed that the killings were an execution and not an encounter and a criminal and grievous violation of human rights.
Five people - Allauddin, Sahjamal Hoque, Promtone Sangma, Jahangir and Salim Khan - were killed on June 20, 2009 in Dohikata Kadaldhowa reserve forest during a joint operation of Assam Police, Army and CRPF. The Commission had registered a case on an intimation, received from ADGP,...
Altruism has been reported among bacterial population and among humans and other animals, like monkeys, and elephants. But in mammalian cells at the cellular level the idea of altruism has never been described before. Fortunately Mr Bikul Das an Indian (Assamese) scientist who is doing his research at Stanford University School of Medicine has just found that altruism is far more common in Homo sapiens, and goes right down to our cells. Cancer cell is considered as a disease of cellular evolution to reach a state of self sufficiency and immortality. The final stage of these evolution is the appearance of aggressive and metastatic cancer cells. These aggressive cancer cells exhibit some...
Kamakhya Temple is all abuzz. Ambubachi Mela is set to begin from Friday. Thousands of pilgrims are pouring in the must –visit spot atop the beautiful Nilachal hill to attend the four-day religious festival. Security has been beefed up in the entire Nilachal Hills stretch with more than 500 policemen and some 150 NCC cadets have been called in for maintaining law and order at the shrine during the festival. Apart from this, paramilitary forces have also been given responsibility to carry out round-the-clock checking.
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