Bangladesh yet to get Tipai impact data: Sen

July 6, 2009

Bangladesh has yet to get detailed information on how India’s planned Tipaimukh dam project may impact the country, water resources minister Ramesh Chandra Sen said on Monday.

He also said the government was still working to fix a date for its parliamentary team’s visit to the planned dam site on the cross-border Barak River in the Indian state of Monipur.

“India has not provided us detailed information on the dam yet. They only gave the foreign ministry a scenario of how much area the project would cover,” Sen told reporters after a meeting with a visiting Dutch delegation at the ministry.

The visiting delegation was led by the Dutch vice minister of transport, public works and water resources management JC Huizinga Heringa (Tineke).

Sen said his ministry has not received any information on the impact of the dam.

“We will know such details after the parliamentary committee visits the area,” he said.

The date of the visit is yet to be finalised, he said.

The committee will decide the date on Monday, to be approved by the foreign ministry, he said.

“During its visit the parliamentary committee will meet with Indian experts. The committee will be informed on how Bangladesh will be affected if the dam is built,” said Sen.

It would not be wise to make any comment earlier, he added.

“It is not right that a dam always causes harm. Bangladesh might be benefited from the dam.”

“That’s why the opposition should make constructive criticisms instead of differing just for the sake of differing,” he said.

‘Political gains’

He said the main opposition BNP was making the Tipaimukh dam project an issue “to derive political gains.

“It is basically not an issue. They (BNP) have brought up the issue to protect party chief Khaleda Zia’s cantonment house,” Sen claimed, referring to an ongoing dispute over the Awami League government’s cancellation of the opposition chief’s lease on the house.

Bangladesh yet to get Tipai impact data: Sen

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