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Sunkosh promises economic boom

29 January 2010


The proposed damsite for Sunkosh project

The detailed project report (DPR) for the 4,060 MW Sunkosh reservoir power project is expected to be com­pleted by mid 2010. The con­struction of the project, which is the first of its kind in the country, will start sometime in 2011.

Once the construction starts, Lhamoizingkha, one of the least developed dung­khags in the country, will see an economic boom in terms of infrastructure. Hundreds of people will get jobs and business will prosper.

On his visit to the proposed project area on January 28, Minister for Works and Hu­man Settlement, Lyonpo Ye­shey Zimba, said that, unlike other projects which benefit­ted “only the contractors”, this project will involve as many local people as pos­sible. “We have learned our lesson from the past projects, and that should not be re­peated,” he said, referring to Gedu town in Chhukha where the infrastructures that came up after the project had been completed did not benefit the business community.

New roads and bridges will be constructed, and existing road will be expanded, which will benefit local communi­ties, Lyonpo said. He said pre-construction activities should start at the earliest so that the local community could reap benefits from the construc­tion phase itself and not wait for the project to be complet­ed.

Unlike the run-off the riv­er hydropower projects, the Sunkosh reservoir is expected to generate the same units of electricity even during the lean season.

Besides, the dam is expect­ed to be a tourist destination.

THDC India Ltd. is updat­ing the DPR by examining the feasibility of construct­ing a concrete dam. The DPR, which was prepared between 1995 and 1997, suggested the construction of a rock-fill dam.

The need to update the re­port was felt as new technolo­gies emerged over the years. Updating the report started in 2008 after which it was sub­mitted to the government of India (GoI). GoI instructed the feasibility study of a con­crete dam.

Concrete dams are easier to build but more expensive. Earth and rock-fill dams are less expensive as almost all the construction materials are locally available. Both types of dams are said to be equally strong.

Once completed, the 265-metre-tall dam will be bigger than Asia’s biggest dam, Tehri Dam, in Uttarkhand in India. There will be a two-km-long headrace tunnel. Below the project, there will be a regu­larity dam to regulate water flowing downstream. The backflow of water will reach Waklaytar on the Tsirang-Da­gana highway.

The previous DPR suggest­ed a private land in Karmal­ing village in Deorali Gewog for the switchyard. An official from the Department of Ener­gy (DoE) said they are explor­ing possibilities of locating the switchyard in Nichula Ge­wog on a plot of government land.

There will be a bailey bridge over Sunkosh River that will connect Deorali and Nichula gewogs. Staff colony is expected to come up in Ni­chula Gewog.

Sunkosh is one of the inter-governmental projects be­tween Bhutan and India to produce 10,000 MW of elec­tricity by 2020 financed on a 70 percent loan and 30 per­cent grant basis. The project is expected to cost Nu 174 bil­lion and will take nine years to complete.

Displacement and reha­bilitation

Roughly 500 families in 17 villages will be directly or in­directly affected by the proj­ect.

Farmers in Karmaling vil­lage and some parts of Ni­chula are in a dilemma over vacating their land. Many farmers said that, if the proj­ect benefits them and the country, they are ready to be relocated. But many others said the government should try to keep displacement as minimal as possible. “There is

a lot of government land which the project should eye first,” said a farmer from Kar­maling.

Dawa Sherpa from Karma­ling said there has been no formal order from the govern­ment yet but rumours about displacement have been go­ing around for a while. He said many people stopped construction and renovation of houses in anticipation of an imminent relocation.

Relocation and rehabilita­tion of the people will not be a daunting task considering the availability of land, according Dagana Dzongda.

A DoE official said that it is only after the completion of the social impact study, which is underway, that the gov­ernment would know which villages will be affected and need rehabilitation. “Some of the villages may get sub­merged but we will not know at the moment, which one,” he said.

Public consultation is part of the social impact study. The public will be consulted and informed about the project and its impacts on their lives and the nation.

THDC India Ltd. officials agreed that there will be dis­placement of people, which will depend on the type of dam.

The Works and Human Set­tlement Minister said there should be least effects on the community. He said that, as far as possible, minimal pri­vate land should be used. He agreed that the government has taken private land in the past at a minimal rate and people didn’t benefit much from the project in the end.

He, however, said the proj­ect is expected to bring many economic opportunities to the people, and they should take part in it and not just be mere spectators.

By Rabi C Dahal

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Comments

One Response to “Sunkosh promises economic boom”

  1. TT on February 3rd, 2010 12:32 pm

    Hello readers,

    Displacement and reha­bilitation

    Relocation and rehabilita­tion of the people will not be a daunting task considering the availability of land, according Dagana Dzongda.

    Are the above sentences fine? I think rehabilitation should be replaced with resettlement ,mena la? Otherwise it sounds like the people would be displaced for corrections of their behaviors.

    Just my view

    TT

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