Teesta no problem, Tipaimukh to be devastating for us

[idune]

Teesta no problem, Tipaimukh to be devastating for us: Prof Farid of CU

Pankaj Dastider

CHITTAGONG, Nov 19: The Indo-Bangladesh deal on water sharing of the Teesta River is likely to be signed in two months as the Indian authority sees it as impediment to gaining transit for its northeast region.

An analyst on international relations observed that the agreement might take place in January 2012 as the Bangladesh Prime Minister is likely to attend the Calcutta University convocation during that time.

"Maybe, the governments of India and Bangladesh will sign the Teesta water sharing at the sideline of Calcutta University convocation by water resources ministers of both the countries in presence of Sheikh Hasina and Mamata Banerjee," said Professor Faridul Alam of international relations department in Chittagong University.

The water sharing agreement between Dhaka and Delhi ran into troubled waters after Pashchimbanga Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee backed out of a visit to Dhaka with Indian Premier Manmohan Singh in September 6 last.

But Mamata recently said the deal would be signed protecting interests of Bangladesh and her state.

"Two things may have prompted her statement: to keep up the opportunity of building greater relation with Bangladesh people who have common culture and heritage as those from her state, and secondly, pressure on her from the Indian polity, businesses and the media," Professor Farid told the FE this afternoon when requested to comment on the Tipaimukh Dam.

But the main problem is not the Teesta water but the Tipaimukh Dam that would cause greater concern for the people of Bangladesh.

Quoting a report published today in a national daily he said the Indian government has signed to construct the mega dam project for hydropower and started working from last month.

"Bangladesh will have to face a very dangerous ecological catastrophe on a vast tract of land in the greater Sylhet area due to the effect of the Tipaimukh Dam," he said.


Teesta no problem, Tipaimukh to be devastating for us: Prof Farid of CU

 

[idune]

'Meek govt didn't even protest dam deal'


Sat, Nov 19th, 2011 12:53 pm BdST

Dial 2000 from your GP mobile for latest news
Dhaka, Nov 19 (bdnews24.com)—BNP has slated the Awami League-led government for its 'lack of action' regarding the Tipaimukh dam, saying its 'submissive' foreign policy has rendered it 'incapable' of upholding Bangladesh's interests.

"A deal for the construction of the dam has already been signed and they [the government] are not even protesting it. The project will harm the people of Bangladesh if it is implemented," the opposition chief whip Zainul Abdin Farroque said on Saturday.

The BBC said in a report that the agreement was signed on Oct 22 between the state government of Manipur and hydro developers Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd and NHPC, with Indian power minister Sushilkumar Shinde and Manipur chief minister Ibobi Singh present, at New Delhi under major wraps.

"Not only have they been unable to protest against the Indian government going ahead with the dam, they have also failed to get our rightful shares of river waters," Farrouque told a human-chain protest.

During Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit to New Delhi in January 2010, her Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh had assured her that "India would not take steps on the Tipaimukh Project that would adversely impact Bangladesh".

The project is estimated to generate 3800 million units of electricity per year and is likely to be completed within seven and a half years after the clearance from the Indian government's Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs.

A section of environmentalists both in Bangladesh and India are opposed to the Tipaimukh Project. They believe that the dam over Barak would significantly bring down flow of water in its tributaries -- Surma and Kurshiara in Bangladesh.

As hundreds of canals and major rivers, which are lifelines for people in greater Sylhet, are totally dependent on the water flow of Surma, there are apprehensions in Bangladesh that the Tipaimukh project of India could spell doom for a large part of the country. .

The opposition leader slammed the government for making parliament a 'one-party and inactive' platform.

The United Nations secretary-general Ban Ki-moon on Nov 15 said at a press briefing in Dhaka that dialogue was the key to resolving the difference of opinion between the government and the opposition over the caretaker government system.

Ban said the UN is ready to provide technical assistance for holding free and fair national polls if the political leadership asks for it.

"The opposition was not allowed to speak for the people in parliament. This parliament is a failure. UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon asked the government why the opposition is not there in parliament. They did not have an answer."

Farroque was addressing a programme demanding a stop to 'propaganda' against BNP senior vice-chairperson Tarique Rahman organised by Zia Sangskritik Songhoton (ZiSaS) at the National Press Club. His birthday is on Sunday.

"The government is afraid of him [Tarique], which is why Awami League is circulating lies to smear him. But it will not be successful," he added.

Tarqiue, the BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia's eleder son, was arrested on Mar 7, 2007 during the state of emergency, Tarique flew to London with his family for medical treatment on Sep 11, 2008 after securing bail from the High Court.. He has since been living there.

On Aug 8 this year, the court indicted Tarique and Mamun in the case under the Money Laundering Act 2002 and issued arrest warrant for him.

'Meek govt didn't even protest dam deal' | | bdnews24.com

 

[idune]

MP wants foreign policy rewritten
Sun, Nov 20th, 2011 9:56 pm BdST Dial 2000 from your GP mobile for latest news

Dhaka, Nov 20 (bdnews24.com) – Independent lawmaker Fazlul Azim has asked the government to 'rewrite foreign policy' in the interest of the country.

In a point of order in parliament, he said Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh during his visit to Dhaka University had assured that India would not do anything which is harmful to Bangladesh.

He came down heavily on foreign minister over her recent meeting with West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

"Foreign minister of a sovereign country negotiated with the chief minister of an Indian state for Teesta water sharing," he said.

"There is no consistency in what she said and what Mamata said," he said adding, "We watched television and there is no consistency."

Dipu Moni and Mamata held a meeting at Kolkata on Wednesday over Teesta issue.

The lawmaker said now Mamata says that she has no knowledge how much water is there in Teesta and they have to analyse before taking a decision.

Azim said the two countries have had negotiation for decades and all efforts would go in vein.

"Even as we are still fighting for the Teesta deal, another issue of Tipaimukh dam is now raised its head," the independent MP pointed out.

Indian state Manipur has secretly struck an investment deal with a number of state-run organisations for setting up the controversial hydroelectric power plant and Tipaimukh dam on India's Borak River.

BBC on Friday said in a report that the agreement was signed on Oct 22 between the State Government of Manipur and hydro developers Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd and NHPC (formerly known as the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation Limited) at New Delhi under major wraps.

The proposed project has sparked debates in Bangladesh after India took initiative to build the dam.

Experts and rights activists have said Bangladesh would be adversely affected if the dam is built upstream.

Even in the state of Manipur, rights groups have been campaigning against the scheme for years and demanded that the government scrap the plan.

MP wants foreign policy rewritten | | bdnews24.com

---------- Post added at 05:31 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:29 PM ----------

Bangladesh Human Rights Commission Chairman said no point having friendship with country building dam to harm Bangladesh
:: ???????? ????? :: ????? :: ???? ?????????????? ????? ???????? ??? ??? ???: ?. ?????

 

[livingdead]

Nobody builds dam to harm other country. We need dam for irrigation and electricity. Your govt needs to bargain a deal with GoI.

 

[Kazhugu]

enough with these whinings...india should interlink all the rivers, divert the water from ganga and brahmaputra to the parched regions of vidharba and deccan and teach these whiners what blocking river water really means.....

 

[idune]

enough with these whinings...india should interlink all the rivers, divert the water from ganga and brahmaputra to the parched regions of vidharba and deccan and teach these whiners what blocking river water really means.....

You should go tell to indian govt; NOT here. There is no value of your chest thumping here.

 

[livingdead]

You should go tell to indian govt; NOT here. There is no value of your chest thumping here.

Idune, Do you think India has right to build dam on its soil to meets its energy/other needs. yes or no.

 

[dr.crazze]

You should go tell to indian govt; NOT here. There is no value of your chest thumping here.

cool down buddy your gov will be asked before any such project also have you forgotten the floods of barak river devastating for both cachar and your sylhet districts

 

[Kazhugu]

You should go tell to indian govt; NOT here. There is no value of your chest thumping here.

and so are your whinings jamati....

 

[idune]

and so are your whinings jamati....

Bal Thackeray inspired indian fundamentalist team has arrived, hope MOD strike out offensive comments.

 

[idune]

Tipaimukh Project: India breaks another promise

Sun, 20/11/2011 - 1:49am

Despite New Delhi’s earlier promise to give Dhaka necessary information about Tipaimukh dam project, it has covertly signed a deal with an Indian company to implement the controversial power project, which will create havoc in the downstream Bangladesh.

The project, located on the Barak River in western Manipur, is under constant attack from non-government organisations (NGOs) in India and opposition parties in Bangladesh as, they think, it will adversely affect the environment of the both countries.

The Manipur state government, National Hydroelectric Power Corporation and other entities of the Indian government signed the agreement on October 22 for implementing the Tipaimukh dam project without informing Bangladesh.

A NHPC press statement posted on its website said the joint venture project in Manipur state would produce 1,500 megawatts of electricity.

On September 7, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the Bangladesh-India joint statement reiterated the assurance that New Delhi must not implement Tipaimukh dam project which would harm downstream Bangladesh, mainly the greater Sylhet region.

Some Indian ministers and high officials in August 2009 also assured a Bangladeshi parliamentary delegation that the project was ‘in the conceptual stage’ and New Delhi must provide Dhaka all data relating to the project.

Water experts say, New Delhi in 1970s also assured Dhaka that the Farakka barrage would be on trial and not harm Bangladesh.

But India has still been withdrawing water through the Farakka barrage, causing environmental catastrophe in Bangladesh.

Once mighty river, the Ganges, in Bangladesh portion has turned into a narrow channel in Rajshahi. The salinity level in the sea facing south-western region, completely dependent on the Ganges for sweet water flows, has reached an alarming stage, seriously hampering the agriculture activities.

The Barak River has entered Bangladesh as the Surma and Kushiara, which play an important role in keeping the ecological balance in the greater Sylhet region dotted with hundreds of water-bodies. Thousands of fishermen and farmers are dependent on the river.

Water development board sources say, the two rivers have already started facing water crunch, hampering the agricultural activities in Bangladesh.

Hydrologists say, the two rivers would dry up as India will have to store huge volume of waters in the upstream for electricity generation.

Another concern over the project is that the dam will be located at a region highly vulnerable to earthquake. Any incidence of earthquake would cause a disastrous situation in Manipur and Bangladesh.

India very often defends the project saying the dam would stop flooding the upstream and it would not harm Bangladesh as it has no irrigation project.

But a section of environmentalists and experts in Manipur and Bangladesh fear that rivers flowing through the countries could be adversely impacted by the project.

Tipaimukh Project: India breaks another promise | Priyo News

---------- Post added at 07:58 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:55 AM ----------

Tipaimukh Project: Disaster in the making

Sun, 20/11/2011 - 2:02am |

Warn experts; no steps that will adversely affect Bangladesh, insists Delhi; we're in constant touch with India, says Dhaka

Ignoring all bilateral agreements and international laws and conventions, India is working to build Tipaimukh Dam for hydro-electricity on the Barak river in its northeastern Manipur state, causing concern among millions in lower riparian Bangladesh.

Environment experts have long been warning that the dam will spell disaster for the environment and induce an economic crisis downstream.

Since the river Barak-Surma-Kushyara is an international river, Bangladesh should have an equitable share of its water and access to detailed information about the project, as per the UN convention and other international water related laws.

Article 9 of the Ganges water sharing treaty, signed between Bangladesh and India in 1996, states that both the sides will implement a no-harm policy and refrain from taking any unilateral actions concerning any shared rivers.

An impact assessment on Surma-Kushiyara river systems conducted by Bangladesh Institute of Water Modelling in 2005 says that a dam like Tipaimukh will surely cause long- and short-term effects.

"Some of the effects will be noticed even after a few hundred years,” notes the study titled "Hydrological Impact Study of Tipaimukh Dam Project”.

The dam will certainly lead to the loss of riverine habitats and species. The free-flowing Surma and Kushyara will run dry and remain so for a major portion of the year (Nov-May), badly affecting agriculture, irrigation, navigation and drinking water supply, the impact assessment says.

But the latest development on the Indian side -- setting up a joint venture company to implement Tipaimukh project without any joint study -- worries Bangladesh.

New Delhi, however, seeks to allay Dhaka's anxiety saying that it would not do anything on the Tipaimukh project that will adversely affect Bangladesh.

Shameem Ahsan, director general of the foreign ministry's external publicity wing, yesterday told The Daily Star, “We are in constant touch with the Indian external affairs ministry. Our high commission in New Delhi is also in touch with the Indian government, and the Indian side has assured us that they would not do anything harmful to Bangladesh.”

On October 22, an investment agreement was signed among NHPC Ltd (formerly National Hydroelectric Power Corporation and India's premier hydropower company), the Manipur state government and another state enterprise SJVN (formerly Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd) to form a joint venture company to implement 1500-MW Tipaimukh Hydroelectric Tipaimukh Dam on the Barak river.

The website of SJVN says Tipaimukh Multipurpose Hydro electric dam will be 162.80 metre high.

It also says the project has been conceived as a multipurpose storage project with the main objectives of hydropower development and flood moderation at its downstream regime.

The project will deliver a large number of socio-economic benefits to the people living in and around the project area.

Back in 2003, India had started construction of Tipaimukh dam on the Barak to generate electricity. But it had to stop the work in the wake of national and international uproar and resistance against probable environmental degradation in and outside India.

Talking to The Daily Star last night, Asif Nazrul, an expert on international water treaties, said India showed the same attitude while building Farakka barrage on the Ganges.

"The government of newly independent Bangladesh conveyed several strong protests to the then Indian government against Farakka barrage, but it could not get any information regarding Farakka. They had bilateral talks with Bangladesh only after completion of the project,” he added.

Though the present Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, has assured several times that his country would not harm Bangladesh, Asif said, “we cannot rely on the statements as his government has yet to take any steps along that line."

In joint declarations made after summits between the two prime ministers in 2010 and 2011, Manmohan assured Sheikh Hasina that New Delhi would not take any step regarding their planned Tipaimukh Dam that may harm Bangladesh.

The Convention of Biological Diversity, ratified by both Bangladesh and India, states a country will not take any measures that could be harmful to biodiversity of its neighbour.

Tipaimukh Project: Disaster in the making | Priyo News

 

[idune]

A farmer in Bangladesh is protesting by holding a poster saying NO to Tipaimukh dam.



Source: Daily Amardeshonline
Daily Amardesh -???????? ?? ??????? ????, ? ????????? ????, ?? ????? ????

 

[LaBong]

yeah, give a random farmer 10 bucks, hang a poorly written signboard on his neck and here you get a propaganda picture.

 

[Roybot]

yeah, give a random farmer 10 bucks, hang a poorly written signboard on his neck and here you get a propaganda picture.

Yeah I doubt the farmer would have a flat tip marker!

 

[idune]

India letting Bangladesh down

Kuldip Nayar tells Star

Eminent Indian journalist Kuldip Nayar exchanges views with journalists and officials of The Daily Star at The Daily Star Centre in the city yesterday. Photo: STARStaff Correspondent

Eminent Indian journalist Kuldip Nayar yesterday noted that India's signing of a deal to construct the Tipaimukh dam without informing Bangladesh was “a violation of trust”.

“India is letting Bangladesh down,” he said while talking to the journalists of The Daily Star during a courtesy visit to the offices of the newspaper yesterday.

“If a country like India has no respect for the word it has given, then what happens to small nations?” he asked.

“We have to see that New Delhi allays Dhaka's fears on this point,” said the 88-year old Nayar, who has been involved in journalism for more than five decades.

The noted columnist, widely read across the sub-continent and beyond, said that people of a right mind in India would take up the issue of the Tipaimukh dam with the Indian government.

“I will not just write about it but I shall also see that our organization, Citizens for Democracy, organises seminars and stages protests on this issue,” he added.

India letting Bangladesh down