School construction suspended

For non-compliance with environment act

Dzongkhag Environment Committee (DEC) of Pemagatshel recently suspended the  construction of new Yelchen Middle Secondary School under Nanong Gewog for violation of Environment Assessment Act 2000. The committee has forwarded the issue to the National Environment Commission.

The compliance monitoring report of DEC states that the construction of the school was carried out without any clearance from environment and forest sectors, the public, gewog and Bhutan Power Corporation, which has power lines at the construction site. Clearance from all these agencies is mandatory before any construction work begins.

The dzongkhag environment officer, Rinchen Penjor, said Department of Education failed to comply with the environment act despite a notification asking it to process environmental clearance. This, he said, was communicated to the department months before the work began, both formally through official correspondence and informally through its representatives.

Rinchen Penjor said DEC in the past had imposed fines and penalties on both public and private sectors for non-compliance with the environment act in works awarded at the dzongkhag level, which falls under the scope of DEC. But in this case, the work was awarded from the headquarters. Therefore, the violation of the act and the magnitude of the work are beyond the jurisdiction of DEC.

At the time of work suspension, major portion of earthwork involving excavation of soil for the construction of staff quarters has almost been completed. The excavated soil was used to fill up terraced paddy fields to create the school’s playground.

Ironically for a government undertaking, about 30 percent of the total area acquired for the construction is registered as wetland (chuzhing). According to Land Act 2007, a plot of wetland should be converted into other categories of land with the approval from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forests (MoAF) and National Land Commission before it can be used for other purposes.  But this was not done, according to the report. The registered wetland used for the construction has been left fallow for some years because of lack of irrigation water.

The total area of land acquired for the school construction is 12.8 acres, out of which 2. 7 acres are registered wetland.  The land acquired for the construction belonged to 16 farmers who haven’t been compensated because the conversion approval is pending.

“We have all agreed to cede our land to the government to pave way for the school construction but we are still waiting for our compensations. We have approached authorities concerned several times but nothing has come out so far,” said Tashi Tobgay, one of the land owners.

He said that, although land owners have not complained over the land acquisition, which is in the larger interest of the people, many are worried to see their land being excavated and developed without assuring them how soon they are going to be compensated. “We hope that this will be looked into,” added Tashi Tobgay.

Meanwhile, dzongkhag education officials said the compensation can be worked out only after MoAF approves the conversion of the land from chuzhing into other categories. The education sector had requested the agriculture ministry for the conversion of chuzhing at Yurung and Yelchen, both for school construction.

Following this, a team from MoAF came for field investigations. However, when the team visited the dzongkhag in August, 2011, their tour programme did not include a visit to Yelchen. The team visited Yurung but the clearance for conversion was refused.

“The chuzhing in question in Yurung was less than half an acre only and it did not affect the school upgradation programme seriously,” said Tshesum Dawa, the assistant dzongkhag education officer. He, however, said that adjustments to the school’s initial plans had to be made following the denial of clearance.

Tshesum said there was clearly an oversight in the field investigation tour programme because the education sector had clearly communicated about the two different sites of Yurung and Yelchen, which required land conversion.

The dzongkhag officials admitted that there was clear lack of communication between the education headquarters and the dzongkhag on this project.

“Although the construction is taken up in the dzongkhag, the whole process of floating tender and awarding of work had been done at the education ministry’s headquarters as a centrally executed programme,” said Kezang Tshering from the dzongkhag education sector. “When we received a copy of the work order, we thought that all the necessary clearances must have been obtained prior to awarding the work. Those at the head office feel that these responsibilities lie with the dzongkhag.”

The dzongkhag agriculture officer, Kiran Subedi, who recently returned from Thimphu, said the conversion approval is being processed at the ministry and that he is assured verbally of the approval. However, it was only on January 25 that the education secretary again wrote to her counterpart in the agriculture ministry seeking approval for land conversion.

Yelchen Middle Secondary School construction, worth Nu 128 million, is funded by the government of India. It is a centrally executed planned activity of the 10th five-year plan. The construction is being carried out by a Thimphu-based contractor.

By Gyembo Namgyal

One Response to “School construction suspended”

1. Karma Dema says:

   February 13, 2012 at 5:35 pm

   Kudos to the DEC! So much livelihood plus environment is destroyed in the name of development. More agencies like you should stand up for the less fortunate people and protect them…its weird that we talk about rural urban migration and the classic example of Govt taking land away from the farmers keep on popping up now and again.
   Moreover, the Education Ministry is perhaps the biggest agency that always contradict its policies by which I mean talks about GNH, moral education, Value education and the lot. There is always a gap between policy and practice and the action they take is devastating to the environment and the youths whom they should be actually looking after.

   Reply