West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s recalcitrant stand on the sharing of the Teesta river waters with Bangladesh has been widely criticised in that it has severely strained bilateral relations. In the bargain what has been sidelined has been the issue of the river itself.
The cruel truth is that the last stretch of the Teesta river is under threat of disappearing underground — forever. The cascade of “run-of-the-river” dams being built on the Teesta and its tributaries require extensive tunnelling in a geologically, ecologically and culturally sensitive area. A cascade of such projects would make most of the river flow in tunnels, destroying the riverine ecology. The river would be gone before Bangladesh would know it.
According to the Save the Teesta campaign, “Extensive tunnelling in geologically fragile areas, dumping of excavated debris into the surrounding landscape and unevaluated social and environmental impacts, apart from the loss of culturally significant ecologies, make these dams a threat to the local communities, indigenous groups and their way of life.”
There are massive irregularities in the way these projects are being handed out. There is utter disregard and callousness towards local communities and the natural environment in the way these projects are being implemented. “The real economic and development needs of the communities, that of better healthcare, universal education, communication infrastructure and energy are being sidelined, instead they are being deprived and deracinated as the Sikkim government aims at becoming a leader in pandering to the private sector.”
There are reasons why this river stands in the danger of being pushed underground. The “run-of-the-river” dams built on the Teesta require diverting the river water through tunnels bypassing long stretches of the natural course. Once this happens, most of the river would essentially end up flowing in tunnels, destroying the riverine ecology for good.
The Teesta IV project in the vicinity of the confluence of the Rangyong and the Teesta will ensure that the last free flowing stretch of the Teesta too will disappear. The advocates of these dams call these “environmentally benign” as they do not require reservoirs that submerge large tracts of land. What they do not tell us is the environmental eventuality.
It had all been very goody-goody in the initial years. When the early plans were drawn, there was talk of comprehensive studies of the social and ecological impacts of dams in the region. In 1999, the Ministry of Power stepped up the ante. The Teesta V project was granted clearance by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) as the first of a six stage ‘cascade’ plan to harness hydropower from the Teesta. The approval was granted under the condition that only after a comprehensive carrying capacity study of the Teesta was completed would any subsequent clearances for dams in Sikkim be given. That was only a token promise.
Starting in 2004, the MoEF cleared six other projects on the Teesta basin, before the study was completed, in violation of “its own stipulations on clearances.” Pressure from other ministries seems to be the probable reason for such violations, as Sikkim is an important part of the “Central Government’s master vision of North-Eastern region as ‘India’s future powerhouse’ with around 168 dams planned.” The environment be damned.
When dams are constructed there’s a lot of money to be made too. The “gold rush” for hydro-electric projects in Sikkim was spurred by the “efficient climate” created by the Sikkim government by bending backwards to bring in private companies. A report by the Comptroller and Auditor-General (CAG) of India had noted that all projects awarded by the government were through MOUs without calling for bids. Someone was in a tearing hurry there.
The CAG report also drew attention to the shocking disregard and callousness towards the people and the environment. In a section on disaster management plans, it noted that the projects “entailed extensive excavation, blasting, construction of mammoth water reservoirs, power houses and allied activities…[that puts] tremendous stress on the fragile environment of the State which could bring about unanticipated disasters and calamities…[threatening] tremendous loss of life and property besides long term damage to environment.” It observed that only two out of ten projects whose Environment Management Plans were examined had a plan for disaster management, both with meagre allotments. It also pointed out that “[n]o affective risk and responsibility sharing arrangement…had been worked out” between the state government and the developers. But then CAG reports hardly make news, unless it indicts big names in the corridors of power in New Delhi.
Even environmental impact assessment (EIA) reports, according to experts, were reduced to a “ritual” almost always “done in haste” and the proper procedures and processes “have often been subverted.” They remain the “shoddiest documents” around, in which “vital facts are ignored, and impacts downplayed.” The documents presuppose the building of the dam, “and often include glowing tributes to the benefits of the project” rather than being honest assessments of the ecological and environmental impacts and costs.
Bangladesh, for obvious reasons, wouldn’t want the dams to built in Sikkim, but growth-obsessed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh certainly would. It is in his interests that the dammed status quo remains. Mamata Banerjee can, meanwhile, easily take the fall.
And as the choreographed farce continues in Sikkim, it’s obvious that those making the Teesta river a heated bilateral issue have little clue about the environment.
