Himachal raises objections to Renuka dam project

Shimla, June 16 (IANS) A proposed hydroelectric project in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district which also aims to provide drinking water to Delhi received a setback Saturday, with the hill state raising objections to the plan citing environmental concerns.

"It should never come. Locals should be taken into confidence before starting the construction of the 40MW Renuka hydel project," Chief Secretary Sudripta Roy said at a symposium organised by the Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited.

"Trees grown over hundreds of years cannot be destroyed overnight just to quench the thirst of people of Delhi," he added.

Roy said: "The motto of business should not be greed but serving the people."

The Rs.3,600 crore project, to be constructed on a tributary of the Yamuna river, is meant to provide 23 cubic metres of water per second to Delhi and also generate 40 MW of electricity for Himachal.

Water from the Renuka dam, a national status project, will be released into the Yamuna river, from where it will flow to Haryana's Hathinikund barrage and finally reach Delhi.

The Delhi government has already given Rs.214.83 crore to Himachal Pradesh to start the construction work.

The project has already been facing protests from villagers.

Under the banner of the Renuka Bandh Jan Sangharsh Samiti, the project-affected villagers claim the government has not taken them into confidence before starting the land acquisition process. They are claiming that more than 700 families of 37 villages would be affected.