Orissa

Himanshu Thakkar has attached herewith a letter just sent to the members of the MEF's Expert Appraisal Committee on the river valley projcets regarding the application of Andhra Pradesh to the MEF for "backdoor" clearance of the embankments to be constructed in Orissa and Chhattisgarh to "protect" the areas of these states from going under submergence due to the Polavaram project. The letter is self explanatory.

To: Mr. P. Abraham, Chairman,& All the members,Expert Appraisal Committee on River Valley & Hydroelectric projects, c/o Dr Bhowmik,Impact Assessment Division, Ministry of Environment and Forests, CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi 110 003

Sub: Objections to EC for Polavaram Multi Purpose Project

Dear Chairman and members of the EAC on River Valley and Hydroelectric Projects, We have come to know from the agenda notes of the 23rd meeting of MoEF's Expert Appraisal Committee for River Valley and Hydroelectric Projects to be held on Feb 16-17, 2009 that the committee will be considering Polavaram Multipurpose Project in Andhra Pradesh by Government of Andhra Pradesh (No. J-12011/74/2005-IA.I) for the proposal for the construction of the embankments to protect the lands in Orissa and Chhattisgarh from going under submergence due to the proposed Polavaram project.

This post deals with the recommendations and outcomes of the recent workshop on "Mangrove Forest Ecology, Management and Restoration" held at Rajanagar (boundary of Bhitrakanika National park) on 26th-27th November 2008, organized by Action for Protection of Wild Animals (APOWA) and sponsored by Ministry of Environment and Forets, Govt of India. The workshop was attended by 101 participants from the community representatives, teachers and lecturers of coastal schools and colleges, NGOs, CBOs, PRIs, Govt authority, Scientists, researchers, media etc. Witnessing firsthand the rapid devastation of the Orissa's mangrove forest wetlands and their associated coastal ecosystems, the participants, resource persons were recommended to form a network to save the mangroves.

Both Mohenjo daro and Harappa reported wells in every household and also community wells. They are perhaps the oldest in the subcontinent. Here is one open well from the Konark temple in Orissa. These must have been the sole providers of good clean water during that time and one of them continues to provide water for the repair work underway.

S.

APOWA teams are at work providing relief and rescue to flood victims but resources are already running out . An urgent appeal to support Orissa flood relief & to provide support to the victims of this unprecedented disaster has been posted on the India Water Portal Blog.

Water Initiatives Orissa's analysis

Water Initiatives Orissa has a detailed analysis of the current situation in Orisssa. The analysis while staying away from allocating blame goes into detail to find out the real reasons for the flood situation.

Please see message below: ======= We are in process of distributing 1,000 sets of TERAFIL water filters among the victims of Bihar flood affected areas for supply of drinking water. These filters can provide at least 50,000 litres of clean drinking water every day, which can be operated without electricity by the victims easily, like any other candle filters.

"Water Initiatives Orissa is a five-year-old campaign which draws strength from civil society organsations, grassroots communities, academicians and others who are determined to work on water, disasters and climate change issues". Email: waterinitiativesorissa@gmail.com

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