Lodhama residents protest Rammam hydel project

DARJEELING: Residents of Lodhama,under the banner of the Jana Kalyan Manch (JKM), have risen in revolt againstthe WBSEB hydel power project on the Rammam river.Several local NGOs havealso thrown their weight behind them. Earlier, the Teesta Lower Dam project hadfaced similar protests. The Rammam project includes a 4.7-km tunnel fromMungmung khola, a distributory of the Lodhama river. Lodhama is around 54 kmfrom Darjeeling.The JKM has threatened to launch an agitation if a surveyof the river being carried out by the WBSEB is not stopped within 15 days.“The WBSEB is planning to divert the water of Lodhama river in order tomake the four turbines work to meet the needs of increased powergeneration,� said Dipak Lama, executive member of the JKM.Accordingto him, the project will affect 50,000 acres of land, 21 villages and parts ofSikkim. People will lose their livelihood as Lodhama and its adjoining areaswill practically become a desert.The construction of the plant started wayback in 1972 . According to the secretary of Federation of Societies forEnvironmental Protection Bharat P. Rai, the construction of the plant startedwhen the Environment Protection Act had not been introduced. Moreover, theauthorities had assured the local people of employment andcompensation.“Out of 500 people who lost their land, only 120 weregiven compensation. The rest are still waiting for the promised money. After 30years, they don’t have much hope,� he added. Of the four phases, thefirst phase of the project was completed in 1996. This is perhaps the only powerproject in the country which is expected to generate more than 23 MW whileearning more than Rs 6 lakh per month, Rai said. “We demandtransparency as this project has taken 30 years to complete. Most large projectsare completed within eight to nine years. As the project is funded by the WorldBank, we can imagine how much the Indian government is paying as interests tothe funding agency using public money. There must be some conspiracy,� Raisaid.According to environmentalists B.M. Rai of Rimbick, power from theRammam hydel project goes to north Bengal and Sikkim while the hill people ofDarjeeling, especially those of Lodhama, languish in the dark.