NEW DELHI: The Cabinet will go into the Tehri Dam issue and until it arrives at a decision on the 2400 mw Soviet aided mega hydel power project construction on its coffer dam will be stopped.
This was the outcome of a five hour meeting convened by the environment minister Maneka Gandhi and attended by the secretaries of power, environment and water resources, the Uttar Pradesh power minister, and environmentalist Sunderlal Bahuguna.
It was also agreed at the meeting that no blasting would be done but work on cleaning the river bed would be allowed.
Gandhi told the meeting that she would be sending a detailed note on the discussions at Monday’s meeting with her observations which would form the basis for the cabinet to study the subject
Work on the prestigious project had come to a standstill after Bahuguna went on an indefinite fast at the project site on December 25 as he claimed the project was ecologically unsafe.
He however called off the fast after appeals by the energy and environment ministers that his views would be heard and looked into.
Article extracted from this publication >> February 2, 1990
