Moving families may delay dam

Construction of the Son La Hydro-electricity Plant may be delayed if 300 households do not commit soon to vacating the site.

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai at a meeting yesterday requested that the provincial People’s Committee speed up the relocation of local people for the building of the plant.

Participants at the meeting to assess the construction targets for this year and last year were told that more than 300 households had not yet agreed to being moved from their land for the construction of the power plant’s main dam.

Hai asked provincial People’s Committee to persuade those mobilise people to support the resettlement programme, while instructing contractors and construction companies to speed up the building of infrastructure facilities at new resettlement areas.

He requested that provincial authorities make efforts to help ethnic minority people protect their cattle and poultry from cold weather.

Hai asked ministries and industries at the central level to co-ordinate with localities to speed up the pace of this year’s work.

Last year’s plan for the building of the power plant has been fulfilled thanks to the joint effort of ministries, industries, provinces and construction companies.

As many as 7,100 households were resettled to new places last year.

To ensure the power plant’s plan, participants at the meeting recommended quickly transferring money for relocating people to resettlement areas, as well as amending and supplementing new policies on resettlement. (VNS)