Bay of Bengal

Public Hearing not Performed in Devsari HEP

{for pics see matujan.blogspot.com}
FIR filed against 11 people by name (Vimalbhai, Gabbarsingh etc.) under IPC. 148,332,427,436,504
Agitation is continue in Deval

On 13th October, 2009 the Environmental Public Hearing (PH) of the proposed Devsari HEP (252 MW) on river Pinder, one of the main tributary of Alaknanda River, District Chamoli, Uttarakhand was organised by Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board amidst growing opposition to the Project from the local vilagers. Satluj Jal Vidhut Co. Ltd., a joint venture of Central Govt. and Himachal State is the project proponent.

KC canal

Attached is an assesment report of the status in Mahbubnagar district created by a team of civil society representatives. The report makes reference to a networking effort of civil society organisations in order to co-ordinate their efforts, and the team promises to continue to survey the situation and make periodic reports.

The following reports are from interactions organized in and around the Kosi Basin on the initiative of the Barh Mukti Abhiyan in alliance with local organizations. Reports from the interactions offer an unique window to the continued effect of the Kosi deluge and also the current local concerns in the field.

A map of the affected areas can be seen at this URL

http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/(db900SID)/LPAA-7WKB6S/picture/0.84?OpenElement&FieldElemFormat=gif

and is also attached to this blog entry

The below is a brief summary of the events:

OVERALL SITUATION

Heavy rains due to depression in the Bay of Bengal and low pressure from the Arabian Sea from Sep tember 29 to October 2 have caused flash floods in north Karnataka and the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh, affecting nearly two million people and claiming 210 lives. In Karnataka, 15 districts are affected and 161 people have nearly tw millionperished. In Andhra Pradesh, five districts were hit by the flash flood and 49 people have lost their lives. However, of the two million, 1.4 million people affected are from Andhra Pradesh.

Many NGOs are working along with communities and industries to save rivers in India. The river Ganga is relevant culturally, and its waters have been used extensively by industries and communities. At the same time, industrial and agricultural discharge or waste is being dumped at many stretches.

The Arkavathi programme interlinks communities that have been traditionally independent from one another. The Arkavathi River is one of the principal tributaries of the Cauvery in Karnataka and flows through Rural, Peri - Urban and Urban areas.

The Mahanadi River delta plain covers 0.9 x 10 km and lies between 85 40' : 86 45' E and 19 40' : 20 35' N. The catchment area of the river covers 1.42 x 10 km. The sediment yield of the Mahanadi catchment is around 200-400 tonnes/km. It has an average annual rainfall of 1572 mm and 70% of this during the SW monsoon season.

Kosi is one of Ganga's largest tributaries and in turn is fed by 7 tributaries - Sun Koshi, Dudh Koshi, Indravati, Tama Kosi, Likhu, Arun, and Tamar. These tributaries encircle Mt Everest from all sides and are fed by world's highest glaciers. The river drains a total area of 69,300 sqkm upto its confluence with Ganga. The river basin stretches 54,000 sq.kms.

The delta belt is home to approximately 125-140 million people. And over 300 million people are supported by the delta. The density of population in the Delta region is 200 people / sq.km. making it one of the densest regions in the world.

The delta region is a high-rainfall region and receives 60-80 inches of rainfall every year.