Govt seems to be undermining

THE Awami League-led government, it increasingly seems, has somehow been convinced by its New Delhi counterparts that there is benefit for Bangladesh to be had from the construction of the Tipaimukh Dam/s on the river Barak. Ever since the Indian high commissioner disclosed late last week India's plan to go ahead with the construction of the dam, at least three members of the cabinet said Dhaka would not oppose the project if it benefits Bangladesh. The commerce minister, Faruk Khan, as usual, came up with by far the strongest hint that the government may have been already convinced that dam could after all benefit, and not harm, Bangladesh, when he told journalists on Tuesday that 'those who are talking too much against construction of the dam are talking without knowing anything…' He did say the government 'will soon send a delegation comprising experts and parliamentarians to see what is going on there and how it will benefit Bangladesh.' That is, however, hardly reassuring.

It would indeed be interesting to know who the commerce minister was accusing of 'talking too much… without knowing anything'; after all, the individuals who have been at the forefront of the ever-intensifying wave of opposition to the Tipaimukh project are mostly experts with years of experience under their belts. Interestingly still, many of them are Indians. They are unanimous in their conclusion that the Tipaimukh Dam/s would wreak an environmental disaster of an unimaginable magnitude and adversely affect millions of people on either side of the Bangladesh-India border who rely on the Meghna river system for their livelihood. Needless to say, their conclusions are based on an ever-growing pile of scientific evidence.

The benefit that the government may be envisaging, i.e. import of electricity generated from the dam, could turn out to be a chimera. In an article published in New Age on May 21, Dr Solbam Ibotombi, who teaches earth sciences at Manipur University and is a staunch critic of the Tipaimukh project, writes that 'the dam was originally conceived to contain the floodwater in the Cachar plain of Assam but, later on, emphasis has been placed on hydroelectric power generation, having an installation capacity of 1,500MW but only firm generation capacity of 412MW.' If so is the case, what percentage of the 412MW of electricity the government expects to import from India, which is no less electricity-starved than Bangladesh, and at what cost? As argued by Ibotombi and other Indian experts, the cost involved here is not just the cost of electricity but the irreparable economic and environmental damage that the project is likely to cause.

When there is a growing body of scientific evidence as well as strong opposition within India against the Tipaimukh project, the argument put forth by the commerce minister and some of his colleagues, i.e. there may be benefit in the project for Bangladesh, can hardly be construed as being a product of naivety and inadequate knowledge. In fact, given the Indian government's perceived predilection for the Awami League, it could very well be construed as the government's willingness to submit to Delhi's plans. Here, the credibility of the government is not at stake alone, the livelihood of millions of people in India and Bangladesh is as well. The ministers in question would surely have done a great service to the country and to themselves if they took the pains to gather the details of the dam project and also go through the scientific evidences that point at the potential economic and environmental damage that the Tipaimukh project would cause. If they had, they might have thought twice before suggesting that Bangladesh is likely to benefit from the project and that the critics of the project are 'talking too much… without knowing anything'.

Time for earnest actions to mitigate power, water misery

LIFE in the cities is becoming increasingly difficult amid repeated power failures and acute shortage of water supply, so it was reported in New Age on Tuesday. The situation, as the report indicates, is set to become worse in the days to come. However, thus far, the government is yet to show any sign that suggests that it is concerned. There is still to be any suggestion from the government as to how it plans to mitigate water and electricity crisis.

Although power cuts and water crisis are recurrent problems, little is done to redress them. Every government blames its predecessor for not enhancing power generation capacity or not commissioning new water treatment plants. However, inefficiency and bureaucratic red tape seem to be the biggest hurdle in this regard. For example, according to the New Age report, the WASA plans to procure 200 more generators to tackle the power crisis and ensure smooth water supply but it will take the agency at least a year to procure and set up the generators.

The authorities must realise that people's patience is indeed running out. People realise that the problem cannot be resolved overnight and are willing to endure but they deserve to be provided with a clear-cut government plan with regard to improvement of the situation. Regrettably, instead of outlining such a plan and trying to make best use of the available resources, the government has thus far employed the sadly familiar tactics of coming up with one excuse after another and blaming its predecessors.

Indeed, the current power and water crisis has not befallen the nation all of a sudden; it is the consequence of years of negligence. However, the crisis cannot be wished away, nor would the people's misery. The government should, therefore, start acting and acting fast. True, the mess cannot be sorted out overnight but the sorting out should begin right now.