Save Dzongu

The Sikkim Government, as a part of the Government of India’s liberalisation of power policy, has planned 29 mega hydel projects on the Teesta and its tributaries in Sikkim. Jairam Ramesh had raised concern about what he called the ‘MoU virus’ which was affecting States like Sikkim, referring to the rapid pace at which agreements were being signed by the State government – bending over backwards to bring in private companies many with no experience in the power sector.
In 2007 members of the Affected Citizens of the Teesta (ACT), mainly those belonging to the Lepcha community participated in 915 day relay hunger strike to save Dzongu, their sacred homeland – which they believe is their place of origin and final resting – from being “defiled, raped, disgraced and dishonoured” by the proposed projects. Their peaceful nonviolent protest was a fight for social justice and their protest narrative incorporated several issues such as ownership, tradition, culture, religion and concern for the environment.
The ‘run of the river’ dam projects involve diverting the river through tunnels and bypassing long stretches of the natural course, before the water is released into the river at a downstream location. A cascade of projects along the Teesta and its tributaries will mean that almost the entire river will disappear underground. Serious concerns have been raised by environmentalists that the creation of reservoirs, fluctuation in natural river discharge and the diversion of river waters through closed tunnels would completely change the ecological conditions of the river systems resulting in the destruction of the riverine ecology. Reported evidences of reduced flow of the river, disrupted farming activities, an increased number of landslides and cracking of houses near existing dam sites have made it already clear that neither the fragile geology, prone to earthquakes and heavy landslides, nor its unique ecology can sustain projects of this magnitude. Also, several of the proposed dam projects in Dzongu lie within the area of the Kanchenjunga Biosphere reserve, and the controversial Panan project is dangerously close to the Kanchenjunga National Park. For the Lepchas, who are now a minority in their own homeland and a dying race, Dzongu represents “the last bastion of their cultural heritage and the only place in the region where they feel free to follow their distinctive religious and cultural traditions.”
In the rush for private sector development the Sikkim Government has also made desperate attempts to make MoEF overturn its decision to disallow dams in certain ecologically sensitive regions in the State, going against the recommendations of the CISME carrying capacity study. There has been no democratic or participatory process at any stage of any of these projects, be it conception, planning or decision making. The State which fears any kind of public debate and participation on the issue has tried to subdue the freedom of people to voice their opinions by labelling anti-dam protestors as anti-development or anti-state. What is needed now is a collective effort in the form of a sustained campaign by all concerned about democracy, self-determination and environmental and social justice to call for an honest assessment and review of all existing dam projects and scrapping of all proposed projects in Dzongu, to prevent the last stretch of the Teesta, the rights of the indigenous communities and the delicate biodiversity of the region from being violated and irreversibly destroyed.
As of now, the Panan hydropower project and the Teesta IV project in Dzongu are still proposed to be built in Dzongu. The Panan project is within the biosphere reserve, and the tunnelling for the project will fall within the buffer zone of the National Park. Within the core area of the proposed Panan hydro-electric project are a host of sacred sites. The Teesta IV project is near the confluence of the rivers Teesta and Rangyong considered sacred by the Lepcha community. In the light of these facts, the following demands need to be made to the Sikkim Governement, the Ministry of Power, the Ministry of Water Resources, and the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF):
Demands:
1. Both the Panan Hydel power Project Teesta IV project should be scrapped, and no more projects should be allowed to come up in the region of Dzongu, the last reserve of the Lepcha tribe and an ecologically sensitive area.
2. Dzongu is already recognised as a biosphere reserve according to UNESCO, and should be declared as an ecologically sensitive area under the Environment Protection Act to give it additional protection.
3. Alternatives for the sustainable development through a participatory approach, such as those identified by the Independent Committee on Big Hydro Projects in Sikkim should be considered and implemented as per the wishes of the community.
4. All the MOU’s signed between the State and private developers for proposed projects in and around Dzongu be made public.
5. The CISMHE carrying capacity study recommended that the sentiments of the indigenous community be reckoned with before projects are allowed, and this recommendation must be enforced.