India has told Bangladesh that it is now ready for a bilateral meeting of experts from both the countries on Tipaimukh dam for two days in New Delhi from August 27.
According to a senior official of the Central Water Commission in Shillong, the members of this expert group, to be drawn from both the nations, have already been constituted.
He said the group members are experts in hydrology and river engineering.
A few officials of the flood control and water resources departments will also figure as delegates, according to a report carried by The Telegraph.
The discussion will focus on reaching a consensus on the construction of the 162-foot dam on the Barak.
The Rs 7,600-crore Tipaimukh dam project, meant to control the recurring floods in the Barak valley districts under south Assam and to generate 1,500MW hydel power, has run into various problems.
A number of the NGOs and scientists of the Northeast, particularly in Manipur and Assam’s Cachar district, and Bangladesh are opposing the project.
The opposition party in Bangladesh, the BNP, headed by the former prime minister Khaleda Zia, organised a big motor rally in Sylhet on December 1 last year in protest against the proposed construction of this project.
The Angikar Bangladesh Foundation, spearheaded by some leading civil engineers in that country, has also opposed this project.
The chief director of the NGO, Muhammad Hilaluddin, recently called upon like-minded environmentalists and river specialists of both the countries to join their hands in opposing the project.
-With UNB/New Age input
