‘Ghost peoples’ that are established in areas affected by the hydroelectric project to claim compensation

(Loving Sangno)

Anini, Mar: With the government intensifying efforts to accelerate hydroelectric projects in Arunachal Pradesh, accusations have emerged that unbridled illegal structures are being built during the night in areas affected by the project, thus establishing ‘ghost peoples’ to falsely claim compensation money.

Previously, these ghost villages were seen along the Trans-Arunachal road (TAH), which was tarnished by a land compensation scam of several rers, which led to the arrest of many government officials, landowners and intermediaries for fraudulently looting the government’s treasure.

Apparently, the ghost of Tah land compensation scam has resurfaced in the vicinity of the Hydroelectricity Project (HEP) of 680 Mega Watt (MW) of Athunli (HEP) in the district of Dibang Valley, as hundreds of hundreds of semi-conscretas and concrete houses are being built every day, before the baseline Athunli hep.

The state government had signed a memorandum according to Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN), a public sector company based in Himachal Pradesh, in August 2023 for Athunli hep.

The project covers a total area of ​​247.34 hectares (24,73400 square meters), under which seven villages fall: Athunli, Malinye, Apanli, Sunli, Gunli, New Echanli and Chiya.

According to district administration sources, there are only 40 homes with a population of 240 registered in the seven villages that would be affected by Athunli HEP.

The Arunachal Times has accessed a copy of a notice issued by the Dibang Valley Commissioner, Pagli Sora, on February 4, 2025, in which the DC declared that all illegal unbridled constructions and structures, and declared that “they will not be evaluated by compensation.” The DC also said that all that construction after the publication of the preliminary notification is illegal.

The DC had issued the preliminary notification on October 4, 2024 for the land acquisition process, invoking section 11 (4) of the right to compensation and fair transparency in the Law of Rehabilitation and Reassure of Land Acquisition (RFCTlarr), 2013.

Representing the families/people affected by the project, the president of the Athunli project committee affected the project (APAPC), Nadim Lombo, said that the district administration had issued the preliminary notification without providing adequate information to the villagers.

“Without informing the villagers, how would we know that it has issued a preliminary notification? We know the law under section 11 (4) of the RFCTlarr law, 2013. The district administration is making illegal with us, we do not do it illegal,” said Lombo, and added that construction structures around the areas affected by the project are not illegal.

When asked about the objective behind the construction of mass structures in the areas affected by Athunli hep, Lombo said: “Look, I personally believe that we cannot deny the construction of a dam. MOA has already signed, the money has been signed. Regardless of how we protested and that we protested, we have not slogan of dams, we do not pay. Compensation?”

Lombo argued that building illegal structures to claim compensation is not corruption, but the right of people. “It is not a type of corruption. If you cannot compensate for our properties, discard the hydroelectric project of our area,” he demanded.

In addition, he argued that it is not written anywhere in the RFCTlarr Law that “structures cannot be built under areas affected by the project.”

“It is obvious that the structures of the building is to claim the amount of compensation,” he added.

Lombo also admitted that 25-30 percent of the owners of the structures are roing.

It is reported that, just after the issuance of the preliminary notification for the reference and property survey by the district administration, which was scheduled on February 15, 2025, the APAPC had raised the objection, saying that the survey should not be carried out before obtaining forest authorization and the environment.

According to the reports, the district administration had provided the report of the state of forest authorization, as shared by the SJVN LTD, to the members of APAPC, and subsequently clarified that the reference survey and the properties survey are part of the acquisition of land under section 16 (1) of the Larr Law, 2013, which is a time process and cannot be delayed.

Despite the clarification of the district prosecutor, the APAPC and the villagers affected by the project had been boycotted to the survey team that had reached the project site on the scheduled date. The day convened a meeting on February 24, 2025, attended by the members of APAPC; However, the meeting was not conclusive.

It is alleged that boycotting and opposing the reference and property survey carried out by people affected by the project is a delay tactic to build more illegal structures. However, Lombo denied the accusation.

Not verified sources reported this daily that the owners of illegal structures are now pressing the district administration to include all these structures illegally built in the evaluation of the property, and that the lack of doing so would invite a strong resistance against the 680 MW Hep proposed.

In the recent budget session, while responding to the discussions of the budget, the principal vice minister, Chowna Mein, had declared the “decade of hydroelectric energy.” The DCM highlighted how HEP’s time ending in the next decade would more or less turn Arunachal into the richest state in terms of per capita income.