Imphal, October 07: Joint Action Committee (JAC) on Construction of Loktak Downstream Project has decided to put pressure on the Chief Minister for starting construction work on the Loktak Downstream Project to be implemented as joint venture of the State Government and the NHPC, at the earliest possible.

In this connection, a meeting of the JAC attended by representatives of 16 would be affected villages in Tamenglong district was held at Thangal village in Nungba Sub-division of Tamenglong district today.

The would be affected villages whose representatives attended the meeting include Taosang, Longlei, Soubulong, Nungsai, Lamdangmei, Shangji, None, Bitiang, Ganglou Part-I, Kalong, Namkanglong, Thangal, Ragailong, Tao-daijang, Nungnang and Rengpang.

During the meeting presided over by chief of Tousang village T Tamjalung, the representatives of the 16 would be affected villages pointed out that the proposal for construction of the project was made some 40 years earlier and instead of objection the local people have given their approval to the project in the interest of the State.

But so far the State Government has not taken up any step to start the project.

The undue delay in taking up the project has also impeded the local people settling in the would be affected villages from making any long term plan for cultivation of crops on their fertile land extending from zero km of Leimatak river to the ending point, the representatives rued, while pointing out that NHPC had also already given its approval to the joint venture.

However, the existing situation indicates that there is no co-ordination between the State Government and the NHPC, the representatives of the would be affected villages said while informing that when the JAC approached the NHPC with the request for construction of the road upto to project site, the NHPC in turn told the JAC to exert pressure on the State Government in this regard.

NHPC also wants that the road to be constructed upto to the project site should be able to withhold vehicles carrying upto to 30 tonne and do not have any idea whether the road being constructed by the Works Department of the State Government could withstand such load, the representatives of the would be affected villages informed the meeting.

They also wondered why the meeting of the monitoring committee of the project is not being held every month as it should be.

Expressing serious concern over showing no sign of work on improvement of the road from Joujangtek to Thangal village despite the same had been included in the work programme of the Government in 2006, the meeting decided to approach the Government to find out its exact stand on the project.

At the end of the meeting, a youth wing of the JAC has been formed with the objective of putting pressure on the Government for start the work of the project at the earliest possible.

It may be recalled here that the foundation stone of the project, which is a part of the Prime Minister's package, had been laid by Union Minister of Power Shushil Kumar Shinde at Thangal village on December 26, 2006 .

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