The struggle continues..

I wrote an article related to the upcoming hydel power projects in sikkim, a few months back . . Chanced upon it while cleaning my hard disk today. Thought it deserved a place here.

Development or Destruction

“Good Bye friend and when you go back to Delhi, tell them that the Lepchas chased you with bows and arrows” joked Dawa (Gen Sec ACT) with the usual glint in his eyes. I was leaving Dzongu; with a heavy heart though. I had formed a bond with the place. With the simple hard working people, the gurgling river, the majestic mountains, the aromatic smell of burning wood and even the rickety bamboo bridge which I must admit requires some skill to cross. Dzongu had made an indelible impression on me.

It was sheer chance that brought me here. In Gangtok, while on an assignment to study the impacts of upcoming Hydro Electric Projects (HEP), I met two members of Affected Citizens of Teesta (ACT) who urged me to come to Dzongu and see the situation first hand. “It’s in a remote corner of Sikkim. It will take 5 hours from here and let me warn you the roads are bad” said Gyatso, whose kind hospitality I was to enjoy for the next two days. It was just the thing I need to complete my assignment and I decide to pounce upon the opportunity.

I spent the next two days discussing the situation with the locals and the members of ACT. “It’s a fight to save our community from extinction. We are a Vanishing Tribe” exclaimed Dawa. He had every reason for this concern. Lepchas were the aboriginal inhabitants of Sikkim and are now a minority in Sikkim. With 6 mega hydel power project coming up in Dzongu the community is bound to feel threatened. “Very Soon there will more Labourers than the Lepchas in Dzongu and it is supposed to be a protected area for us!!” said Dawa. The people of the region are also hardly skilled to be employed in activity related to the dams.

I went to the proposed project site of Panan HEP, Dzongu; a 300 MW project which was granted Environmental Clearance on January 2nd. The dam is to be built on Rangyang Chhu, a major tributary of Teesta with a power house at Panan Village. The dam site is on the buffer zone of Kanchendzonga Biosphere Reserve. The area near the dam site comprises of dense mixed deciduous as well as evergreen forests. The forest here has rich biodiversity. Out 160 Mammalian Species found in Sikkim, 105 Species are found in Panan HEP Catchment. Out of which many species such as Himalayan Tahr, Serow, Blue sheep – Bharal, Musk deer, Red panda, Tibetan wolf, Leopard, Snow leopard, Clouded leopard fall in the schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act. Since the project is Run of the River (ROR) type the submergence here would be insignificant. However the major impact on the wildlife would be due to the human intervention and related construction activities such as blasting, vehicular movement, cutting of trees etc. The place has had little human interference so far as the area is sparsely populated. An influx of construction workers and the construction activities could have disastrous consequences for this ecologically sensitive area.

However the biggest impact of the HEP would be on the river itself. The river is in pristine condition and the EIA report calls it as unstressed of any pollution. The EIA report also calls the majority of the species as pollution intolerant. There is also no provision of compulsory downstream flow in the Environmental Clearance given to the project. Thus the 14 km stretch of river between dam and power house may have insufficient flow once the dam is commissioned. Rangit Dam is a good example in this regard. I visited the Rangit HEP a few days after visiting Dzongu. This was the lean season and thus there was hardly any water flowing downstream of the dam. The officials at the dam site said they simply couldn’t afford to release water as it would automatically mean less power generated. Same thing could happen with Rangyong Chuu. This beautiful river might actually disappear for the section between the dam and the Power house during the lean season.

Energy Security is definitely a major concern for our country and Sikkim is a part of 50,000 MW Hydel Power Scheme launched by the Government of India. With 22 Major Power Projects coming up in the State, this could also act as a major source of revenue for the cash strapped Sikkim government. The 510 MW Teesta 5 Project, the first of the 22 projects is yet to be commissioned. It has been full of controversies right from the start with questionable public hearing, poor R&R measures, collapse of the Surge Shaft, improper muck disposal and not to mention the various social problems associated with the project. Thus common sense would tell anyone to have a detailed study of the environmental and social impacts of the Teesta- V project after it is commissioned. Only after that should other projects should be awarded. But the government probably thinks otherwise. It has been awarding projects to various power companies at an alarming rate. If everything thing goes as per state government's plan, it might mean big money for the power companies and the government, but at the same time it could probably lead to one of India's biggest environmental disasters.

Since independence India has looked at hydel power as a cheap and reliable source of power. With global warming being the talk of the town these days, it is likely that there will be further empahsis on hydel power as it is an emission free source of power. But it is always an environment friendly source? That is one question we need to ask ourselves.

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P.S - ACT members launched a hunger strike in June, 2007 protesting against the HEPS coming up in Dzongu , with Dawa spearheading the movement. He was on a hunger strike for nearly 2 months before he was forced to withdraw due to ill health. The relay hunger strike continues till date.

Log on to http://weepingsikkim.blogspot.com/ for details.

I am Luving It

Sometimes things seem to happen for no reason. Scientifically it is not possible, as all things should have a reason. So if one really makes up his mind to find out the reason, it in most cases would be a chain reaction; spurred in all probablity by a seemingly inconsequential event. Over that last few hours I am trying to single out that very event.

I am feeling damn good about myself. I suddenly feel I have got that spark which was missing over past few months. I am feeling more energetic than I have felt ever before. I am in love with myself.

...and best part is I have no damn idea about the reason for it :)

Moving On...

I like the ease with which most people say they have moved on with their lives. I sometimes really wonder whether it is that easy. Over the last three months I have been anything but idle. I have been really busy; shuttling every day from my home to office in cabs, working endlessly on one project after other, trying to meet deadlines, trying to delight the clients :) as they say it here. But I really don't think I have moved on. I don't think I can.

Somehow I always feel that how much ever we try a part of our past always remains with us and there is precious little we can do about it. Some people try to forget it in order to move on with their lives. But I really don't think that possible. At least I am not one such person. I love to remain nostalgic most of the times.

a new phase

Its been a while since I posted something here.. Frankly there was nothing much to write. The last few days were everything but exciting. The party in my house was probably the only silver lining. Though when I came to my senses the next day I realised that the house was in a teribble mess and I had probably the worst hangover of my life. So spent the next day cleaning up the house and guzzling glasses after glasses of cold coffee. It in my opinion is the best remedy for a hangover.

Anyways , the good news is that my life is about to enter a new phase . My professional life starts tomorrow and I am very excited about the same. However the bad part is that my office starts at 7:30 in the morning and the cab would come to my house around 6:30. So I will have to make major adjustments to my biological clock. A small sacrifice probably considering that this was one of the companies I was aiming at last year. I intend writing my experiences soon. Here is a picture of the building where my (would be) office is located.

Sikkim Weeps...

The other day I got a phone call from a friend. He puts up in Passendam , a remote village in North Sikkim. A series of Hydro Electric Power Projects are coming up in the region. The villagers mostly Lepchas by origin have been protesting against them. But it has been falling on deaf ears. So they had to resort to drastic measures. Three of them are now on a hunger strike for the last 8 days. Click on the link for more details.

http://weepingsikkim.blogspot.com/

I wouldn't have heard about the hunger strike had it not been for my friend. I haven't seen any newspaper in Delhi or any major media channel covering it. Is covering marriages of celebrities more important for our media? Why do we alwys need a Medha Patker for the nation to wake up and listen. All that these people want is to be heard. It is very sad that in the 60th year of our independence even that is proving to be difficult.

the bench

I have always loved this bench at the electrical canteen (DCE). Have spent many memorable hours sitting there ...Eating piping hot samosas... Listening to Ankit's funny one lines and Neeraj's latest funda.... Planning out the next Daru Party.. Discussing the eccentricities of the teachers of our department..... and yeah staring (mind u not ogling)....


Now, there is a particular way of sitting on it. The bench has a table attached to the back rest. So you place your bottom on the table and put your foot where your are supposed to place your bottom. For your back there is the wall...

I dunno for how much time it wud be there.. may be someday someone might throw it away calling it an eysore.. or it just might give up on its own... I just hope that it doesn't happen soon... Electrical Canteen would lose its charm without it...

Zeher Khurani......

"Zeher Khurani Giroh Se Saawdhaan" screamed a warning written in bold letters inside the bus...It was hard to miss it.. especially if u were sitting on the front seat ... It was March end and I was going to Rishikesh with friends....

Zeher Khurani..... Dramatic scenes started flashing though my mind... Our bus rambling along a deserted highway..... fields on both sides.... Suddenly the bus driver sees a barricade on the road.. The bus screeches to halt.. In no time men apear from the fields brandishing their swords..... Turbans on their head...Red tikka on their forehead.... They kick open the door and swarm into the bus..... shouting Zeher Khurani Zindabad!!!! Kali Maiyya ki Jai !!!!

Off goes the head of the driver in one swish of the Sword.. The conductor also meets the same fate...then their Sardar points the tip of his sword on the chin of a pot bellied Seth and shouts "Tum Logon Ke Paas Jo bhi Kimti Saaman hai de do"..

Wow! The trip promised nothing less than a bollywood potboiler of the 80s.. but much to my dismay the journey was as boring as ever..... except probably that brief moment of panic when the police chaps came to check luggage... I thought they would discover our booze and confiscate it... fortunately no such thing happened...

Anyways later I found out about the Zeher Khurani Giroh.. They are a group of people who specialise in drugging people and running away with their valuables.. Baah! We live in such an boring world...

My fanged brother

It sometimes amuses me that most of the kids living in my block known the name of my dog and probably none of them know mine.. I once heard one of them calling me "Jojo waale Bhaiya" ... Jojo is incidently the name of my dog.. An adorable alsation*.... unfortunately this is something which very few people appreciate..usually getting terrified by the stream of barks he lets out moment they press the doorbell...

He came to us some 6 years back.... appeared as the runt of the litter.... and so was probably ignored both his by mother and the former owner... yet he had this mischveous glint in his dark brown eyes... something that remains till today...

His hard to imagine life without him now... his daily walks, the ticks which somehow always get stuck to his body, his fondness for icecream, the scores of rats he has killed, his welps pleading us to switch the air conditioner on ...and the look of sheer exhilaration on his face whenever he sits in the car (as if the whole "pack" is on a hunting expedition)... He has become an integral part of our lives....


P.S -I don't have his picture with me on the comp.. will upload it moment i have it.... and yeah the blog is now public

(*) Alsation and German Shephard both refer to the same breed... they are often mistaken to be different

Frustrated...

I have learnt two things during the past few days..
1. Past is not always a precursor to future..
2. Jogging is the best thing to do when u r frustated..

I am frustated.... Frustated about nothing happpening my way over the last few days.. absolutely nothing.... I have this horrible habit of not taking such things too well.. and this makes it worse..

and yeah jogging does make u forget ur woes for the time being...So i have started doing that... every evening ..At least this way I'll lose weight ....

Of small things and the greater good

A friend of mine is a big fan of Arundhati Roy.... He keeps quoting portions from The God of Small Things (TGOST) time and again.... His passion for the book rubbed on to me and I finally read TGOST a few weeks back ... and loved it...

During my School days I remember reading an essay by Arundhati Roy in the Outlook.. It was on the Narmada Dam... I read it again today and could probably appreciate it more than I could as a teenager ... Here is the link...

The Greater Common Good

I am not exactly a great fan of Arundhati Roy the activist... However the essay does make you think... about how a villager is denied his "basic rights" to give the urbanite his "basic comforts" .....about how the first world still rules the third world... about how we conveniently say that the "Natural Resources" belong to the country.... about how our policy makers have been ignoring conventional wisdom over the years.... and about how little we know about our fellow countrymen...

I intend reading more by Arundhati Roy soon.... but definately not today.. My(a) head is spinning.... the article was really thought provoking...

P.S- The blog already has 4 readers ... will invite more people soon...

An uncertain start..

It's not that I always wanted to have a blog.. neither it is that my mind is like a caged bird desperate to be free.. and neither is my mind brimming with ideas and thoughts... and i don't think i write well either... Starting a blog was just a sudden thought... a sudden desire for no reason.... something that has guided the 21 (soon to be 22) years of my existence..

This may exactly be the thing the confused contradictory person that I am needs.... may be I need a medium to pour my heart out... may be I need to find out what I am really passionate about... may be I need to discover people... may be I need to discover me...

and now that i have created one, I plan to be sincere about it.. I am usualy sincere about very few things.. I hope this blog would be one of them..

As of now i plan to keep this blog as private.... not planning to invite anyone to see it.... May be with time that might change...