International Day of Action for Rivers celebrated in an island of Subansiri, Assam

Day of Action for Rivers observed in an island of Subansiri

Monoj Gogoi

DHEMAJI, MARCH 14, 2013:

The People's Movement for Subansiri Brahmaputra Valley (PMSBV), an anti-dam organisation of the Subansiri valley celebrated the International Day of Action for Rivers today at an island of the Subansiri river near Chauldhuwa. On the occasion, hundreds of men and women gathered on the island from various rural areas of Lakhimpur and Dhemaji districts and going to the riverside they lit earthen lamps in order to worship the river. In the knee-depth water the people shouted slogans against the construction of Lower Subansiri Hydroelectric Project (LSHEP) carrying posters and banners in their hands. Talking about the significance of the Day, Keshoba Krishna Chatradhara, the secretary of the PMSBV told that this day had been observed at various parts of the world since 1998 and in Subansiri valley PMSBV had been celebrating this day from 2004 in various ways. He told that the rivers, which are just the arteries of the earth were facing sever threat from the profit making dam builders and as a result of that the rivers were going to lost their ecosystem for ever. Observing International Day of Action for Rivers was an effort by the dam affected people to save their rivers, Chatradhara told. In the meeting held on occasion, Keshoba Krishna Chatradhara's voluminous book Swarna Upaityakar Pora Mrityu Upatyakaloi was inaugurated by a local media person Monoj Gogoi. A discussion on Subansiri, Environment and the Future of the Valley was also held among the participants where the participants reiterated that the LSHEP would bring serious havoc to the environment and the downstream people. It may mentioned that the International Day of Action for Rivers, earlier known as International Day of Action against Large Dams, for Rivers and Life was decided to celebrated on March 14 in each year in a meeting of dam affected people in Curitiba, Brazil in 1997. In the meeting more than 300 dam affected people of 20 countries gathered there and decided to celebrate the Brazil's Day of Action against Large Dams internationally from the next year.

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