RAGA, 26 Sep: The Bogra Sella Repari Kamala Hydro Project Dam Axis Forum (BSRKHPDAF) has issued a week’s ultimatum to the general manager of the 1,720 mw Kamala Hydro Electric Project (HEP), seeking immediate redressal of long-pending concerns of the land-affected communities.
At a press conference held at the Raga Press Club in Kamle district on Friday, the forum’s vice president Rakhe Tag outlined the three-point charter of demands. These include declaration of a permanent colony site in Belo Rijo; convening a public hearing and signing of an MoU with the affected families prior to survey and property assessment; and public announcement of benefits entitled to the affected communities under the project.
Tag cautioned that failure to address these demands within the stipulated period would compel the forum to adopt “democratic and legal means of protest, without issuing further notice.”
The forum also voiced discontent over the district administration’s move to release a preliminary notification on land assessment without consulting the stakeholders. It stressed that decisions concerning the project must be made transparently and in consultation with the people whose lives and livelihoods are directly impacted.
