Aproposed gas pipeline that is supposed to pass through Mizoram has evoked strong protests from the Human Rights Network of Indigenous-Tribal Peoples, North East Chapter. Protesters claim the pipeline will cause ecological damage to the state.
A proposal was drafted by South Korea's Daewoo group and gail to extract gas from the Arakan state in western Myanmar. Reports say three routes were being considered, of which one was to go overland through Arakan and Chin state in Myanmar, then through Mizoram and Tripura crossing through northern Bangladesh.
Protesters say if the pipeline passes through Mizoram and Tripura, it will affect about 400,000 hectares of land, as 5 km on both sides of the pipeline will have to be declared as protected areas. It would destabilise the state's environment and put up an artificial barrier.
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