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| Bandipora residents up in arms against NHPC, HCC | | Poisonous water | | Syed Tahir Bukhari
BANDIPORA, July 14: People in North Kashmir's Bandipora district are up in arms against National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) and Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) for generating poisonous and polluted water that is damaging the agriculture land and environment in the district.
Residents of several villages comprising Matrigam, Bonkoot, Lawaypora, Kaloosa, Pazalpora, Sonarwani Chandaji and Papchan today staged massive protest against HCC and NHPC and complained that the poisonous and polluted water is coming out of the tunnels being constructed by these companies.
People including men, women and children from various villages and other adjoining areas of the district assembled this morning on the Gurez-Bandipora road near Pazalpora and staged demonstrations against the NHPC. Local resident of Chandaji Fayaz Ahmad Mir said that, "the polluted water has put lives of residents at risk and a numerous diseases have spread among them.
Tunnels under construction are not only polluting water but the environment is also under threat. Mir accused the Corporation of adopting "criminal silence towards the growing pollution in the area due to project construction."
Chanting slogans, the protesters charged NHPC with duping the people by making false promises. They said villagers are being forced to drink polluted water. Another protester Abdul Qayoom Dar said they were promised roads, filtered water, schools and dispensary by the NHPC. But they said, the Corporation failed to fulfill its promises, forcing people to stage protests.
The potholed roads from Bonkoot to Mantrigam reflect the destruction caused due to the construction of the power project, Dar said. The public outrage against NHPC intensified following pollution of paddy lands in Pazalpora allegedly due to the dirty water and pollutants channeled by the Corporation from various colonies. The Bonar Nallah is not only a source of water for residents living downstream in Pazalpora, Kralpora and other villages, but the lifeline for the paddy growing area downstream. "We are the worst victims of chemical pollution and the groundwater is completely contaminated in the area," complained Mohammad Ashraf of Matrigam. The machinery setup of HCC were causing incalculable damage to the environment and making life miserable for all sections of the people in the area, he said.
"The Nallah Bonar irrigating thousands Kanals of Paddy land and inhabiting famous Trout fish is at receiving end, people informed Deputy Commissioner Bandipora but of no avail," said local residents of Chandigam. Meanwhile, the top officer in HCC claimed that they were dumping the debris at the approved sites and. "There might be some cases, but the company would take remedial measures," he claimed. |
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