Depleting water sources in Himachal worry locals

Fearing drying up of traditional water sources and depletion of flora and fauna due to massive construction of hydropower projects, people of over two dozen villages of Lahaul Valley on Tuesday staged a massive protest in district’s headquarters.

The reservoir of the 300 MW Jispa project of Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (HPPCL) on Chenab will displace more than 200 families of seven villages, the protesters said.

They said protests were planned to apprise the authorities, on World Environment Day, of the threat being posed by the upcoming projects on Chenab river basin —  so far the least exploited basin for hydropower generation.

World Environment Day is celebrated every year on June 5 to raise global awareness about the need to take steps for  protection of the environment.

"The Chenab river basin is under threat. The government has allocated more than two dozen mini and mega projects in the past four to five years," said Ravi Thakur, president of Jispa Bandh Jan Sangharsh Samiti.

He added that the threat is more from mega projects being constructed by private firm Moser Baer Projects Private Limited and state-run HPPCL.

"These projects will hit the livelihood, directly or indirectly, of more than 6,000 people settled in 26 villages in Lahaul Valley," he said.

Mega projects – two by Moser Baer and one by HPPCL – are coming up in Miyar, Seli and Udaipur areas. Chenab basin falls largely in the high-altitude region (above 2,500 metres) in Lahaul and Spiti district.

The area is characterised by difficult terrain, fragile and loose mountains, prone to avalanches, landslides and falls in seismic zone-IV. "Of late, abnormal rise in temperature, receding glaciers and increase in precipitation in these cold deserts indicate that something has gone wrong with nature," Thakur added.

Afforestation drive

Extending a helping hand, a leading power company which is developing a hydro electricity project in Lahaul snd Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh has planted thousands of trees to add to greenery of the region which is under snow for almost six months of the year.

Moser Baer – one of the leading renewable energy developers – has planted around 4,000 trees across 3.5 hectares of forest area in difficult Lahaul and Spiti district which is located at a mean elevation of 3,048-4,572 metres.

On the occasion of World Environment Day on Tuesday, several Deodar trees were planted in Tindi, Udaipur, Triloknath and Chemrat villages with the help of the forest department, the gram pradhans and environmentalists, a Moser Baer release said.

Besides plantation, it also organised quiz and painting competitions and working model exhibition for school children on the occasion to create awareness about environment among people.

“We recognise the importance of environment and will continue to put in efforts to make Lahaul greener and more environmentally conscious,” S K Khare, senior vice president, hydro, Moser Baer projects said. It is also distributing solar lanterns among villagers to avail of unconventional source of energy in the valley.