Can Congress support any proposal of BJP? Looking at the current situation in the politics of Lutyens Delhi, this question seems far-fetched. 

Can Congress support any of BJP's proposals? This question seems far-fetched considering the current state of politics in Lutyens' Delhi, but a different atmosphere was seen in the North-East, hundreds of kilometres away from the national capital. BJP has got Congress' support on the issue of a hydrocarbon project in the northeastern state of Sikkim. Sikkim BJP state president DR Thapa has opposed the central panel's approval of the Teesta-III hydropower project. Under this project, the central panel has approved the construction of a dam on the Teesta river. Opposing this, DR Thapa wrote a letter to PM Narendra Modi on Tuesday and requested for reconsideration on this issue. In support of their point, Sikkim BJP officials are also going to meet Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav at the end of this month. 

Now Congress has also joined BJP's voice. Congress has also opposed the approval of the dam and said that this project is being approved without any thought. Congress leader and former environment minister Jairam Ramesh posted on social media that due to its construction, the danger of disaster at the dam site will remain as before and it will have adverse and devastating effects on the lives of the people of the lower areas. 

He also shared a statement issued by the Congress in August last year in which the opposition party had hit out at the government and said hydropower projects in ecologically sensitive areas were being implemented for the past few years without adequate consideration of their environmental impact.

The Congress had also said that the dam on the Teesta river was a prime example of how the ecology was being fundamentally altered, with grave consequences for future generations.

Why is there protest?

On the midnight of 3-4 October 2023, the natural moraine dam of South Lhonak Lake was breached by the debris of the collapsed glacier. The glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) caused massive destruction. 40-50 people were killed and the 60 m high rockfill concrete dam of the 1200 MW Teesta-III Hydropower Project was washed away. Thousands of people had to suffer displacement. The situation has still not completely returned to normal. 

Due to these reasons, the Sikkim unit of BJP is opposing the new project. Thapa wrote a letter to PM Modi on February 2 saying that security concerns must be resolved first and only then should any new project be considered. He wrote in the letter that scientific re-evaluation of all hydropower projects in this area is needed. He said that all the previous assessments were bad and that is why the old dam was washed away. A fresh assessment should be done on a completely scientific basis keeping the security point of view in mind, only then it will be right to move forward in this direction. 

Thapa wrote in the letter that Sikkim is an ecologically sensitive Himalayan state. Therefore, considering all the challenges including climate data, GFOF risk, the comprehensive environmental impact should be assessed in a solid scientific manner first. The dam construction should be proceeded only after ensuring complete safety.