Agartala: The government of Tripura is mulling a middle path to make sure that the interests of thousands of farmers growing crops close to the Rudra Sagar lake could be protected without causing any major harm to the sprawling lake surrounding the Neermahal, which is also the state’s only Ramsar convention site.
Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha on Monday reviewed the present situation of the lake and passed directions to the concerned departments to maintain water level in 240 hectares of land without any fail.
The Chief Minister’s direction to the officials is in sharp contrast to the High Court’s judgement that said 11 meter river level water should be maintained in the Rudra Sagar lake for conservation of the site.
If 11 meter level of water is maintained in the lake, all the croplands surrounding the lake will directly affect the life and livelihood of over 2,000 farmers dependent on paddy cultivation.
Nalchar MLA Kishore Barman, who was present in the review meeting, told EastMojo that the state government was trying to strike a balance.
“We don’t want to hurt the farmers of the region. This fertile land produces so much of crops that one season’s harvest can feed Tripura for a couple of months,” the MLA said.
At the same time, Barman said, there can be no compromise with the Ramsar site because of its “multi-dimensional importance for Tripura”.
“After considering the views presented by both the sides, the Chief Minister went with the proposal of keeping the river’s water level at 9.8 meter. Even at 9.8 meter, the river will submerge some portion of the farmland and the lion’s share of the crop land could be saved,” the MLA said.
According to Barman, an expert committee will be constituted to study the water level of the Rudra Sagar and its impact on the crop land.
More than 2,000 farmers are dependent on the farmland located in close proximity to the Rudra Sagar lake. While over 500 hectares of cropland falls within the lake area, more that thousand hectares of land is owned by farmers there.
“Now, if the High Court order is followed in letter and spirit, any kind of cultivation will not be possible in this land. The farmers have proposed that if the water level is fixed to 9.5 meter river level which is 1.5 meter less than what the High Court has strictly batted for might resolve the whole problem,” the MLA pointed out.
The Tripura government will now raise these issues before the High Court and seek its guidance to arrive at an amicable solution.
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Earlier, speaking to EastMojo, amicus curiae for the case Indrajit Chakraborty said, “The Chief Secretary has been asked to submit a detailed report on what has been done following the High Court verdict and accordingly the proceedings will further continue. Two brick fields constructed beside the lake were closed and a sluice gate has been directed to install for maintenance of the water level.”
Among the others, Principal Secretary to Forest Department, member of the fisherman cooperative society in Rudra Sagar and other stakeholders also remained present in the meeting.
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