Many young people rallying against the government move to set up the Rampal thermal power plant near Sundarban are carrying out campaigns on social networking and video-sharing sites demanding an early cancellation of the project. They are holding signature campaigns and requesting petitions against at project to save Sundarban as ‘it has always protected the country from natural calamities.’
The government is set to lay the foundation stone of the 1,320MW coal-fired plant at Rampal in Bagerhat on October 22.
Bangladesh-India Friendship Power Company, a joint-venture of Bangladesh’s Power Development Board and India’s National Thermal Power Corporation with shares halved between them, is implementing the $2 billion project.
Many youth organisations have organised online signature campaigns. A green group of youths, 350.org, opened a petition, Stop coal-fired Rampal power plant and save Sundarban.
About 1,300 people signed the petition till Saturday evening, said Marzia Israt, a young green campaigner at the Bangladesh Youth Movement for Climate. The petition will be submitted to both the Bangladeshi and the Indian company.
Another campaign, Save Sundarbans: Stop Rampal, by an Indian web site had so far collected 5,400 signatures. The petition will be submitted to the Indian corporation.
Animators Samir Asran Rahman and Pratik, along with others, uploaded a short animation, Silent Voices in the Sundarbans, onto YouTube on Friday showing the devastation the project could spell for Sundarban.
Tahia Faruq, a young physician, in her Facebook posting said, ‘They [government] are making this country empty of all natural resources, all natural landmarks. This can’t be an example of a democratic country as rulers still want to continue the project by washing away the people’s choice. We are experiencing a dictatorship!’
-With New Age input
