Staff Reporter
ITANAGAR, 30 May: Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Friday said that he would soon propose a meeting under the leadership of Deputy Chief Minister and Hydropower Minister Chowna Mein with all the stakeholders of the Siang Upper Multipurpose project (SUMP).
Addressing a press conference, Khandu said that the affected stakeholders can participate in the meeting for discussion and for clearing queries. The meeting can be held either in Pasighat or in Itanagar.
“We will do what our people will say. If they don’t want hydropower, we won’t even try,” he said.
However, he said that the SUMP is a defence mechanism, and that people have to understand it.
“If pre-feasibility report is not prepared, we won’t be able to know which areas might be submerged,” he added.
“From the beginning, the Government of India and the state government have made it clear that, once the PFR is prepared, the government can discuss the safety parameters, environment, compensation and rehabilitation,” the CM said.
Khandu said that paramilitary forces have been deployed not to put down the voice of the public but for the protection of the machineries and skilled human resource aiding in conducting the survey.
