Thrissur, Monday, March 22, 2010: The State would respond with proper documents to the Union ministry’s objection on the Athirpally Hydro-electric project before the expert panel, said Kerala State Electricity Board Chairman Rajeev Sadanandan. Also the committee has been informed that if the project is implemented there would be no issue of evicting the tribals from their land.

There had been difference of opinion prevailing between the State and Centre regarding the much coveted Athirapally Hydro electric project across the Chalakudy river in Thrissur district. The Centre in a showcause notice on January 4 last had asked the state why the clearance given in 2007 should not be revoked citing environment reasons.

The MoEF decision to revoke the earlier clearance comes in the wake of severe protests by environmental groups and scientists.
The Union ministry on July 19, 2007 had cleared the Kerala State Electricity Board’s proposal to build a 163-mw dam on the Chalakudy river. The clearance had sparked massive protest from environmental activists and scientists, who accused the ministry of sounding the death knell of a unique riparian eco-system.
The centre gave its clearance after the Expert Appraisal Committee for River Valley & Hydroelectric Projects visited the proposed site in April 2007.

Environmentalists fear the Rs 675-crore KSEB project will affect 138.6 hectares of forestland, dry up the Athirapally waterfall and affect tribal families living in the area.