IMPHAL, September 18: The All Loktak Lake Area Fishermen`s Union Manipur (ALLAFUM) has today in a press statement objected to the Short Term Action Plan (STAP) grants to the Loktak Development Authority (LDA) and its reported extension till March 2014 by the Planning Commission of India to save the Loktak Lake and its surrounding wetlands.
The activities taken up by the LDA are totally contrary to those well-established principles of the Ramsar Convention for the wise use of wetlands, it claimed.
It said in its press statement that there were no spot visits and interactions by the state government agencies with the Loktak Lake fishermen. The official reports without ground reality form the basis of such an Action Plan, it continued.
The press statement questioned the veracity of the Monitoring and Evaluation carried out by the Water Institute, Karunya University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu; and added that a sum of Rs. 224 crore was sanctioned to the controversial K-Pro Infra Works Private Limited for clearing 236.21 sq km phumdis in the Lake.
Migratory birds like Nganu Kokngangbi, Nganu Thangong, Meitungnga, Thoidinglam, Tharoichabi, etc have not been sighted ever since the commission of Ithai Barrage, the statement further condemned.
The report from Wetlands International South Asia (WISA) does not reflect the results of the one-day Stakeholders Consultation Workshop on ‘Draft Water Allocation Policy for Loktak Lake’ prepared by WISA held at lmphal on January 17, 2012, it further said.
There are many aspects of this draft policy which requires close examination by local experts and stakeholders and the one-day Stakeholder Consultation Workshop was not an acceptable process without any meaningful participation by local communities and experts for the finalization of such an important policy document that will have critical impacts on the ecological character of the Loktak Lake, the environment of the Manipur River Basin and the people of Manipur, it said.
Furthermore, the press statement questioned why the Loktak Lake and its conservation was confined only to the state agencies (IFCD, Wildlife Department, ministry of agriculture, ministry of water resources and ministry of culture, ministry of women and child and development, etc) and National Hydro Power Corporation. The increase in waterfowl from about 4,000 to 34,700 is total eyewash to cover up the LDA`s misdeeds and multi-crore rupees scams in the Loktak Lake in contravention to the Gauhati high Court order of January 25, 2012. Such reports were prepared by so called experts who have never visited Loktak Lake, it said in the press statement.