Polavaram: Agency Girijans face threat of evacuation మే 28, 2013
Posted by bharath in Andhrapreneurship, Godavari, Khammam, Koya, Polavaram, ST, Telangana.add a comment
Polavaram: Agency Girijans face threat of evacuation
May 24, 2013, The Hans India
Khammam: Several hundreds of Girijans living in the Agency area of Khammam district are facing threat of evacuation due to the construction of Polavaram Major Irrigation Project across Godavari in Polavaram mandal of West Godavari district. West Godavari district spreads on one side of Godavari while tribal villages in Khammam district spread on the other side.
These tribal thandas along the riverside of Godavari in Khammam district face the threat of evacuation. For establishing a project whether by Union Government or by State Government in the Agency area where Girijans live in large numbers, the consent of the local people (tribals) is essential. The government has to conduct Grama Sabhas at the affected villages. (మరింత…)
Polavaram tenders, a case of ‘quo pro quid’ ?? నవంబర్ 1, 2012
Posted by bharath in Andhra, biodiversity, Congress, corruption, Godavari, indigenous, Polavaram, politics, Telangana, TRS.Tags: Congress MP, dam, tender gifts, Transstroy India Limited
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Polavaram tenders, a case of ‘quo pro quid’ ??
by A Saye Sekhar, Frontpageindia.com Oct 31,2012
Transstroy India Ltd was selected for the execution of the massive Polavaram project. The project tenders became controversial twice and the Government had cancelled the tenders following legal intervention. In fact, the tender was given to SEW Infrastructure of CL Rajam, who is Chairman of Namaste Telangana newspaper and a close associate of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) president K Chandrasekhar Rao.
When the Government cancelled the earlier ones and called for tenders afresh, Transstroy India Ltd in which Guntur MP Rayapati Sambasiva Rao, has interests, and Soma Constructions came as L1 and L2. After the techno-economic analysis, the Engineer-in-Chief of multi-thousand-crore Polavaram Project awarded the execution order to Transstroy India Ltd, which was asked to submit the project schedule within 15 days. (మరింత…)
AP – Maharashtra in bitter battle over Babli project అక్టోబర్ 29, 2012
Posted by bharath in Congress, corruption, ecology, Godavari, Identity, Polavaram, politics, regionalism, Telangana.Tags: Central Water Commission, inter-state conflicts, Jala Yagnam, Maharashtra, riparian rights, water conflicts, water sharing
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Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra lock horns over Babli project on Godavari waters
Amarnath K Menon, India Today, Hyderabad, October 17, 2012
Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, both Congress ruled states, are locked in a bitter battle over the sharing of the Godavari waters and the impounding of the water at the Babli project in Maharashtra. The all party demand in Andhra Pradesh is for the demolition of the Babli project even as the Supreme Court has on Tuesday deferred further hearing on the dispute until November 8.
The execution of the Babli project and the drawing water from its reservoir as well as 11 projects upstream in Maharashtra in violation of the orders of the Central Water Commission would adversely affect the flow of the Godavari waters to irrigate farms in Telangana and turn the region into an arid zone.
“The Maharashtra administration and local farmers are not allowing us even to visit the project,” said the Andhra Pradesh major irrigation minister A. Sudarshan Reddy.Though the Maharashtra claim is that it is only tapping 60 thousand million cubic feet (TMC ft) of water the contention of Andhra Pradesh is that its computation is that the upper riparian state is already drawing 65.35 TMC ft. (మరింత…)
Odisha to oppose Polavaram project at NWRC meet on Oct 30 అక్టోబర్ 27, 2012
Posted by bharath in Andhra, Congress, corruption, Godavari, Polavaram, politics, ST, submergence.Tags: back water effect, BJD, Chhattisgarh, CWC, embankment, Jala Yagnam, National Green Tribunal, Naveen Patnaik, NWRC, Odisha, water wars
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Odisha to raise Polavaram issue at NWRC meet
By IANS, Bhubaneswar, 26th October , 2012
Opposing the multi-purpose Polavaram project in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, Odisha government today said it would raise the issue at the National Water Resources Council (NWRC) meeting slated to be held in Delhi on October 30.
“We will take up Polavaram issue at the meeting convened by the prime minister,” Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said before leaving on a six-day visit to New Delhi.
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said the state government had been opposing the proposed Polavaram project for a long time. (File photo/ Express)
Stating that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has convened a meeting of chief ministers of various states, Patnaik said he would attend the convention and put forth issues relating to the state.
Besides the Prime Minister, the union water resources minister, the Andhra Pradesh chief minister and others are likely to attend the October 30 meeting. (మరింత…)
Polavaram Dam: Corrupt interests at the expense of noble alternatives అక్టోబర్ 25, 2012
Posted by bharath in corruption, Culture, ecology, Godavari, Identity, indigenous, Koya, Polavaram.Tags: alternatives, Chhattisgarh, dam, dam breach, EIA, Jala Yagnam, Odisha
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Observational Report on the Polavaram Dam Project and Surrounding Areas
By: Drew Bahr, HELP International Intern
During the summer of 2011 I had the opportunity to personally witness the proposed construction site of the Polavaram Dam as well as interview three engineers and environment experts with alternative proposals and view the conditions of the people in the proposed area of displacement that would be created by the Dam. During this three-day journey from Hyderabad to northern Andhra Pradesh and Orissa, I was surprised to find that many things are not as they were officially described by the government.
Our trip began with an effort to document the present existence of canals to provide irrigation for the surrounding countryside from the Godavari River to refute the claim that the Dam is necessary to provide irrigation for rice and other crops. Although government engineers seem to ignore their presence, we visited perfectly working canals and pumping stations from the river alongside new canals which were supposedly built to take water from the Godavari River to the Krishna River Basin. These larger canals, however, seem to have displaced an inordinate amount of farmers and did not provide means for their local use through pumps or other forms of access.
Secondly, we visited the actual site of the Polavaram Dam and were able to observe proposed construction plans and costs. I was shocked and ashamed to find that the costs of the Dam project had greatly exceeded the rate of inflation of the Rupee several times over and that the proposed additions to the Dam to justify such expense were not commensurate. Moreover, the safety and security of an earthen dam of such vast proportion was clearly called into question upon seeing both the proposed length of the dam as well as the size of the potential reservoir. I would recommend that all inhabitants downstream on the Godavari River take note of the catastrophe and imminent danger a rupture or collapse of the earthen dam would pose to their lives and livelihoods. (మరింత…)
Adivasis launch ‘Jala Deeksha’ అక్టోబర్ 21, 2012
Posted by bharath in Andhra, biodiversity, Congress, corruption, Culture, ecology, Godavari, heritage, Identity, indigenous, Khammam, Koya, Polavaram, ST, struggle, Telangana, YSR.Tags: Chhattisgarh, dam break, deforestation, displacement, involuntary resettlement, Konta, Kunavaram, Motu, Odisha, PAPP, R&R, Sabari, Sileru, Sukma, uphill migration
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Adivasis launch ‘Jala Deeksha’
Staff reporter, The Hindu, Khammam, October 19, 2012
Standing in waist-deep water near Kunavaram, the protesters raise slogans against Polavaram project
Adivasis from areas facing submergence from the Polavaram project on Thursday launched a relay “Jala Deeksha” at the confluence point of the Sabari and the Godavari near Kunavaram.
The Adivasis launched the agitation under the aegis of the “People Against Polavaram Project” (PAPP), an inter-State committee comprising various tribal organisations of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Ordisha. Adivasis from Malkangiri district in Odisha and Sukma district in Chhattisgarh participated in the stir on the first day.
(మరింత…)
Tribals launch Jala Deeksha against Polavaram Dam అక్టోబర్ 20, 2012
Posted by bharath in Andhrapreneurship, biodiversity, corruption, Culture, Godavari, Identity, indigenous, Polavaram, ST.Tags: Bachawat, dam break, inter river linkage project, Jala Yagnam
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Tribals launch Jala Deeksha against Polavaram Dam
- M Bharath Bhushan
Tribals and civil society organizations from Malkangiri (Odisha), Sukma (Chhattisgarh), and Khammam (Andhra Pradesh) launched Jala Deeksha on Thursday 18 October demanding immediate withdrawal of Polavaram project that threatens to adversely affect around four lakh people in Eastern Ghats besides causing irreversible loss to ecology in the region.
The Polavaram project is in violation of several laws. It is most controversial and illegal as it lacks approvals from affected people and the authorities of two neighboring states and Government of India. There is no approval of Grama Sabhas in the submergence region of Orissa and Chattisgarh states where no public hearing has been held (even if dykes and protection bunds are constructed to avoid submergence). It also lacks approvals from Gram Sabhas of hundreds of villages to be submerged in Khammam, East Godavari and West Godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh.
The project lacks Environmental clearance from MoEF for submergence in Orissa and Chattisgarh states (or for dykes/ protection bunds, etc); Clearance from CEA for power component; Clearance for revised costs by the expenditure (Finance) Committee; Approval of Planning Commission Government of India for revised costs; among other clearances from several central authorities.
This is a project which benefits none, but a curse for all.
The project claims to irrigate land that is already irrigated under existing and ongoing projects such as Tatipudi – Pushakara LIS, Yeleru, Chagalanadu LIS, and Torrigedda Pumping Scheme irrigating altogether 520,000 acres out of Polavaram project’s claim of irrigating 720,000 acres in the same region. The duplicate project is being pushed by Government of Andhra Pradesh only to benefit contractors who have already made thousands of crores for duplicate canals adjoining the existing canals downstream.
The dam is likely to cause massive destruction downstream in the event of dam failure/ dam break according to experts – Prof Sivaji Rao and T Hanumantha Rao (Retd Engineer in Chief, Govt of Andhra Pradesh). National Institute of Hydrology estimated that about four million people downstream would be killed in case of dam failure.
(మరింత…)
Transstroy is now the contractor to build disputed Polavaram Dam అక్టోబర్ 18, 2012
Posted by bharath in Andhra, Andhrapreneurship, biodiversity, Congress, corruption, ecology, Godavari, Khammam, Koya, Polavaram, politics, regionalism, TDP, Telangana, TRS.Tags: Chhattisgarh, CL Rajam, cost escalation, culturicide, CWC, displacement, duplicate ayacut, East Godavari, Gammon India, High Court, illegal dam, Madhucon Projects, Odisha, re-process, SEW, Soma Enterprise, submergence, Transstroy, water wars, West Godavari
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Transstroy to implement Polavaram project
Special Correspondent, The Hindu, Hyderabad, October 18,2012
The consortium of Transstroy-JSC EC UES has finally been selected as the contractor to build the three main components of the Rs. 16,100-crore Polavaram project — rock-fill-cum-earthen dam, spillway and penstocks for 960-MW powerhouse planned as part of the project.
The selection has been made by the State Level Standing Committee (SLSC) headed by C. Muralidhar, engineer-in-chief, Irrigation, and reportedly approved by the High Level Committee which has Chief Secretary (Minnie Mathews) as its chairperson. The SLSC has other engineers-in-chief, the director, Finance, and the chief engineer, Central Designs Organisation, as members. Subject to final approval of the selection by Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, Transstroy consortium will be awarded the contract for the works. Transstroy-JSC EC UES quoted a price of Rs. 4,054 crore which was 14 per cent less than the IBM (internal bench mark) value fixed by the government at Rs. 4,717 crore. (మరింత…)
Demolish disputed Babli project, we will pay the costs: Sudarshan Reddy, AP Irrigation Minister అక్టోబర్ 18, 2012
Posted by bharath in Andhra, biodiversity, conflict resolution, Congress, ecology, Economy, Godavari, TDP, Telangana, TRS, violence.Tags: Amarnath K Menon, Babli, criminal dams, Maharashtra, water wars
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Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra lock horns over Babli project on Godavari waters
Amarnath K Menon, India Today, Hyderabad, October 17, 2012
Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, both Congress ruled states, are locked in a bitter battle over the sharing of the Godavari waters and the impounding of the water at the Babli project in Maharashtra. The all party demand in Andhra Pradesh is for the demolition of the Babli project even as the Supreme Court has on Tuesday deferred further hearing on the dispute until November 8.
The execution of the Babli project and the drawing water from its reservoir as well as 11 projects upstream in Maharashtra in violation of the orders of the Central Water Commission would adversely affect the flow of the Godavari waters to irrigate farms in Telangana and turn the region into an arid zone.
“The Maharashtra administration and local farmers are not allowing us even to visit the project,” said the Andhra Pradesh major irrigation minister A. Sudarshan Reddy. Though the Maharashtra claim is that it is only tapping 60 thousand million cubic feet (TMC ft) of water the contention of Andhra Pradesh is that its computation is that the upper riparian state is already drawing 65.35 TMC ft. (మరింత…)
Neoliberalism and the nature of the Polavaram beast: Aijaz Ur Rahman అక్టోబర్ 11, 2012
Posted by bharath in Andhra, Culture, displacement, ecology, Godavari, Identity, Koya, Polavaram, Telangana.Tags: core, Elinor Ostrom, Harvey, road to serfdom, Sen & Dreze, TATA
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Neoliberalism and the nature of the Polavaram beast: (TINA* or TATA**)
- Aijaz Ur Rahman
*TINA: (There Is No Alternative; famously coined by M.Thatcher)
**TATA: (There Are Thousands of Alternatives; used by I.Wallerstein, youtube video)
“The environmental situation in India today is not about “quality of life”…but rather about the conditions of production and survival itself” (Jennifer Wenzel, 1998, writing of Mahasweta Devi’s work).
PART I
Ever since they learnt of plans for the Polavaram project, the Koya community has been aflutter with anxiety and consternation. It would not only submerge large number of Koya settlements, but parts of the Eastern Ghats forests on which many still depend. The Koya, like most Indian tribes are a reticent community, a numerically significant group transitioning to settled agriculture from hunting, subsistence from forest produce and podu (shifting) cultivation. Indignation slowly dawned from the unthinkable: “Projects that affect life and the future of our children and the tribe as a whole cannot be decided by anybody other than us” (Koya village heads’ Appeal To Withdraw Polavaram Dam, 1995, Lokayan Bulletin).
The Polavaram-Indirasagar project has been planned and pursued by successive A.P. state governments determined to harness the Godavari river waters, even at huge social and irreparable environmental cost. It is expected to cause the more massive displacement of people, destruction of forests and loss of livelihoods, than any other project in India.
Cynical mining depradation at Chatti village near AP-Chhattisgarh borders. Photo Syed Sybhani, ASHA
The GoAP has begun the process of awarding substantial contracts to firms spearheading construction of the dam and canal system. The tenders process has been annulled time and again amid charges of lack of transparency, arbitrariness and cronyism. Political parties and other lobbies, too, have jumped in support of the multi-purpose project ostensibly for the irrigation, hydro-power, projected water and development ‘needs’ of Eastern Andhra Pradesh. Shabbily conducted Environmental Impact Assessment reports (EIAs) have ignored many legalities and important parameters, their costing, in the haste to fulfill mandatory requirements. The unspoken strategy seems to be: ‘once the dam is built, permissions would anyway (have to) be duly awarded, after all you cannot keep a state government in the dock for inadvertence’. (మరింత…)
