The District Administration Office of Sankhuwasabha has begun distributing compensation funds to those affected by the Arun Lower Hydropower Project, which is under construction with a capacity of 669 megawatts in Sankhuwasabha.

The administration has stated that it will distribute compensation amounting to NPR 1.4 billion for those affected. This amount will be provided to those whose land was acquired for the construction of the Arun Lower Hydropower Project. According to the District Administration, land in the area has been valued between NPR 500,000 and NPR 3.4 million, as per Assistant Chief District Officer Mohanmani Ghimire.

A total of 656 people in the Lower Arun project construction area will receive compensation. The proposed project will affect 338 households, with 16 families being completely displaced. The project will require 184 hectares of land, of which 65.96 hectares are private property.

The Indian company, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVN), which is constructing the Arun III project, has also taken on the responsibility of building the Lower Arun project. The plan is to use water from the 900-megawatt Arun III Hydropower Project, under construction in Makalu Rural Municipality, to supply the Lower Arun project by channeling it through a 17.4-kilometer tunnel to Chewabensi in Khandbari Municipality-2, according to RC Suleria, Deputy General Manager of SJVN Lower Arun Power Development Company.

Satluj has agreed to construct the Lower Arun project following the same model as the Arun III project.

Source: kantipur