Guwahati: Indigenous organisations and community groups staged a three-hour sit-in at Baithalangso in West Karbi Anglong on Tuesday to oppose two proposed pumped storage power projects, demand the unconditional release of land rights activist Pranab Doley and seek an early resolution of the long-pending boundary dispute.
The protest was jointly organised by the Autonomous People’s Movement, the Duar Amla MAC Constituency Committee, the All Tiwa Students’ Union, the Karbi Students’ and Youth Council, and local tribal and indigenous communities. The groups submitted a memorandum to Assam Chief Minister through the West Karbi Anglong deputy commissioner, asking the state government to halt the transfer of tribal land to corporate interests for the projects, release Doley unconditionally and settle the boundary dispute.
The organisations said the land, forests, hills and natural resources of Karbi Anglong and West Karbi Anglong are closely linked to the customary rights, identity and livelihoods of indigenous communities. They opposed any move to transfer tribal land to private corporate interests in the name of development and called for protecting land rights and community ownership of natural resources in Sixth Schedule areas.
The protest comes amid concerns over two large off-stream, closed-loop pumped storage projects proposed by the Assam Power Distribution Company Limited. They include a 1,500-MW project at Lipgaon village in East Karbi Anglong’s Diphu subdivision and a 900-MW facility near Tharakhunchi village in West Karbi Anglong’s Donka subdivision. Community groups have repeatedly raised concerns over forest diversion, displacement of indigenous families and threats to wildlife.
For the Lipgaon project, 441.9 hectares of proposed reserved forest land under Section 4 of the Indian Forest Act has been sought for diversion. Project details indicate that nine families across five villages would face displacement, while 89 families have been identified as project-affected. A detailed Rehabilitation and Resettlement plan is yet to be prepared, and the project would require felling 21,767 trees. The forest area is home to leopards, barking deer, porcupines, slow lorises, hoolock gibbons, serows, rhesus macaques, flying squirrels, king cobras and pythons.
The 900-MW Tharakhunchi project has been approved in principle. It requires diversion of 79.37 hectares of reserved forest land, while the total project area is 308 hectares, including non-forest land. Of 8,147 trees recorded in the area, 6,905 are proposed to be felled, apart from bamboo groves. The project is expected to displace seven families from five villages, while 294 families have been identified as project-affected.
The organisations also demanded Doley’s unconditional release. He has been booked under the National Security Act for opposing the transfer of agricultural land for a proposed Hyatt luxury hotel project near Kaziranga National Park. On the boundary dispute, the groups said prolonged uncertainty has caused hardship and insecurity among tribal and indigenous communities in Karbi Anglong and adjoining areas. They called for dialogue with all stakeholders to reach a permanent settlement based on historical records, official administrative documents and local residents’ interests. They maintained that development projects should not undermine local livelihoods or proceed without considering residents’ views and obtaining their free, prior and informed consent.
Original Source: https://nenow.in/environment/assam-indigenous-groups-oppose-pumped-storage-projects-in-karbi-anglong-demand-pranab-doleys-release.html
Category: Assam,Environment,Northeast News,Top News
Tags:
Publish Date: 2026-11-03 20:14:00
