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INDIA has, apparently, decided to go ahead with its Tipaimukh Hydropower project ignoring the objections raised by the government, environmental organisations and people in general of neighbouring Bangladesh.
There is no reason to be surprised about it. The giant neighbour has the tradition of protecting its interests best, no matter how it affects the interests of the neighbours. The Farakka Barrage, which has been causing serious economic and environmental damage to Bangladesh, is a glaring example.
The North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Ltd (NEEPCO), a public sector enterprise under the Indian ministry of power has already invited international bid for the construction of the 1500 megawatt (MW) Hydropower project at Tapaimukh village under Churachandpur district at the confluence of the Barak and the Tuivai rivers in the eastern state of Manipur.
The construction of dam for the Tipaimukh project will naturally deprive the river Meghna of its usual flow. The issue was raised by the Bangladesh side at the last Joint Rivers Commission (JRC) meetings. The Indian side promised to look into the issue and provide Bangladesh with detailed project report (DPR) of Tipaimukh before going for its implementation to dispel fear of Bangladesh. But the Indian authorities have decided to go ahead with the project without informing Bangladesh anything about it. That remains to be a serious problem while dealing with India; it says one thing but does the opposite. The Indian negotiators pretend to be serious, sincere and fair at the negotiating table. But behind the scene they give a damn to its neighbours' complaints and continue with their work.
Environmentalists here claim that the dam if constructed would have serious bearings on Bangladesh since the Barak feeds the rivers Surma and Kushiyara that flow into the Meghna, one of the three major rivers of the country. The dam would be a constant headache for Bangladesh since excess water would be released from it during the monsoon and the less water during the lean season.
If the mighty Megna is deprived of upstream flow due to the Tipaimukh project, Bangladesh will be in double jeopardy. Two of the three major rivers would then be deprived of their usual dry season flows, casting economic and environmental disasters for the country.
According to experts, India will build one of the world's highest rock-fill dam to harness the Barak waters for generating electricity. It also claims no damage to Bangladesh.
But Bangladesh continues to be worried about the dam project, particularly when the Indian authorities are holding back all the information about it in violation of the promise it had made at the last JRC meeting.
The damage caused by the Farakka to the country's economy and environment has been enormous. There were lots of talks between Bangladesh and India on the Ganges water sharing since 1975. There have been short- and long-term agreements and a memorandum of understanding between the two unequal neighbours on the Ganges water sharing. But the fact remains that the damage that Bangladesh has suffered as a lower riparian of an international river is irreversible. The country will continue to suffer due to the Farakka Barrage and other dams or barrages constructed by India on international rivers, including the Teesta.
No amount of sympathy and good words from the Indian authorities or the so-called civil society can compensate for the losses that Bangladesh has been suffering since the diversion of dry season flows of the international rivers by India. There will be no end to such sufferings. More and more rivers would continue to be silted up and ultimately die. The intensity of floods and river erosion will further increase during monsoon. And the intrusion of salinity will increase.
Though Bangladesh and India struck a 30-year treaty during the last Awami League rule for sharing of the dry season flow of the Ganges, nothing is made known to the members of the public by the authorities concerned about the availability of the dry season flow of the Ganges. The people do not know whether or not India is going by the provisions of the water treaty.
Many suspect that Bangladesh may in a similar fashion be duped by the Indian authorities on the multi-billion dollar river linking project. They have a feeling that what the Indian government has been saying about the project is not the real picture. The Indian claim that the project is still in a formative stage and its repeated assurance that nothing will be done without informing Bangladesh are being taken here with a grain of salt.
The river linking project is very much on in the Indian government's agenda. There might come one sudden announcement, much to the surprise of the government and the people of Bangladesh, that a particular segment of the project would be inaugurated by so and so on a particular day.
The issue of sharing of the dry season flow of the common rivers is much more important than any other contentious issue between Bangladesh and India since its economic and environmental consequences are enormous and far-reaching.
Bangladesh water resources minister in last December, in accordance with the decisions taken at the last JRC meet, wrote a letter to his Indian counterpart to pay a joint visit to the common river sites. But until now there has been no response from the Indian side. The lack of response might be due to change of guards twice in the Indian irrigation ministry in recent months.
Since India has decided to go along with the Tipaimukh project, the government of Bangladesh should purse the issue seriously and seek clarification from the Indian government.
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