Imphal, June 23: The ecological imbalance and drastic changes brought in Loktak lake due to the Loktak Multipurpose Project should be immediately assessed and reviewed so that corrective measures can be initiated at the earliest otherwise the largest fresh water lake in Eastern India may become the world's most polluted lake in the not so distant future.

This was stated by social activist and member secretary of the Policy and Organisational Research Associates, Manipur (PORAM) Ch Chidananda during a press meet at Manipur Press Club here today.

He mentioned that the Loktak lake covering an area of 287 sq kms has been included in the list of Ramsar sites.

At present, the LDA seems to be cleaning the lake of wastes and pollutants discharged by the NHPC, he observed.

Chidananda asserted that the present sorry state of Loktak lake is largely due to NHPC's lack of concern for various aspects other than engineering and profit making.

When the Loktak Multipurpose Project was commissioned, the NHPC paid little attention to the ecological balance of the lake and was least concerned with the socio-economic life of the people settling around the lake, he claimed.

Besides initiating due process to review and assess the impacts of the Loktak Project, the State Government should work to take control of the Loktak Power station totally or make arrangements so that the State receives 50 percent of the power generated from the project free of cost, he said.

In the absence of such arrangement, the people of the State may soon be reduced to a life of slavery which gets only whatever is given to them out of mercy by their masters, Chidananda cautioned.

Quoting experts, the PORAM member secretary noted that the basic points responsible for the dying condition of Loktak lake is siltation by rivers falling into the lake, discharge of toxic substances and perpetual holding up of backup water by Ithai Dam which is a part of Loktak Project.

Referring to an advertisement issued by NHPC on June 19 in this paper on the occasion of its silver jubilee of working in Loktak Project, he asserted that some points of the advertisement were blatant lies.

Quoting the advertisement which reportedly claimed that the Project had brought a revolution in agriculture, enhanced annual crop production, saved flood prone areas and modernised fishing activity, Chidananda alleged that the truth is the opposite of these claims.

He contended that because of the Project, 11,305 hectares of agricultural fields have been inundated while it remains highly questionable whether any area has received irrigation from the multipurpose project.

Ridiculing the reported claim of the NHPC that the areas which faced floods in 1966 were saved from deluge since the Project was commissioned in 1983, he reminded that the Manipur valley faced floods twice last year.

On the contrary, villages/areas located to the southern and eastern sides of the Loktak lake have inundated since the Project was set up, Chidananda contended.

There is no point saying about fishing activity.

Observing that fishes being reared at present are under personal initiatives of the fish farmers, he noted that because of Ithai Dam, some indigenous fish species have disappeared from the State.

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