Aasu takes out rally against Subansiri dam construction

Dibrugarh: The Dibrugarh unit of the All Assam Students’ Union (Aasu) staged a massive protest in the town on Friday calling for a complete halt of construction activities of the 2,000MW Subansiri Lower Hydroelectric Project (SLHEP) on the Assam-Arunachal border at Gerukamukh in Lakhimpur district.
Panic has gripped residents of the downstream areas in Brahmaputra’s northern bank after one of the guard walls of the hydropower project’s powerhouse recently collapsed under surging floodwaters. From 2003 itself when the Centre gave its go-ahead to the project, the Aasu and several other organisations have been strongly opposing the construction of the mega dam saying that it would turn into a major disaster for people living in Lakhimpur, Dhemaji and Majuli districts. The SLHEP, also known as the Subansiri dam, is a run-of-the-river dam that is different from conventional dams. These dams do not have huge reservoirs, but generate electricity by harnessing the energy of flowing water.