Private power producers have requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to reconstitute the Environment Ministry's committee on assessing the impact of Uttarakhand disaster, saying that it lacks the state's representation.
Heavy monsoon rains and landslides wreaked havoc in the hill states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh and flooded parts of Haryana on June 16 and 17, leaving close to 1,000 people dead.
The disaster affected power generation at many hydel plants in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh.
"Water is one of the precious and critical resources of the state of Uttarakhand, and contributes to the state's economic growth and development. Therefore, the representation and participation in such critical study would be paramount," Association of Power Producers said in a letter to Singh.
"We request you to take up with MoEF ( Ministry of Environment and Forests) the matter of reconstituting the body with inclusion of appropriate domain experts without a stated position on the matter in order to avoid personal biases and prejudices and also to ensure a balanced and outcome of the proposed study," APP Director General Ashok Khurana said.
APP is an industry body representing the private power producers in the country.
The letter said that MoEF will need to conduct social, ecological and economical impact of the projects along with the benefits and then give a balanced view aimed at promoting sustainable growth in the region.
It added that appropriate level of representation and participation from Government of Uttarakhand is not there in the presently constituted committee by MOEF.
"Equally important is the need to maintain objectivity in the findings of the committee, which might prove to be a difficult task if the committee consists of members with a very strong and stated position on the matter to be examined," APP said.
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