Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud yesterday said that the government is treating the construction of the $3B Hope Relief Channel as a “priority” and the plan is to get the project underway as soon as possible.
This declaration comes at a time when several concerns have been raised by experienced engineers such as Malcolm Alli as to the suitability of the proposed canal to drain the East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC). Other individuals such as Melvyn Sankies of the Guy-ana Association of Profes-sional Engineers (GAPE) and the Project Director of the Guyana Citizen’s Initiative (GCI), Dr Rupert Roopnaraine have expressed apprehension about this initiative, and have urged that greater scrutiny be applied to the project.
However, Persaud insists that the decision made is the best one in the circumstances based on sound engineering advice. Last Tuesday, two consultancies for the relief channel were submitted to the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board. One was submitted by E&A Consultants Inc and the other was a joint bid tendered by the SRK Engineering firm in association with McDonald’s Construction Company. He told Stabroek News that the joint bid is a venture between the local SRK Engineering firm and an overseas firm.
The bids are currently being evaluated and the Tender Board will make a decision shortly, Persaud said.
In the meantime, the government is sorting out the groundwork to get the project started. Yesterday Persaud as well as Housing Minister Irfaan Ali, met those residents of Dochfour, who will be forced to relocate in order to accommodate the construction of the channel. Stabroek News was told that 150 feet will be cleared to the left and the right from the centre of the canal which separates Dochfour from Plantation Hope. This will affect persons who either live on or own one of the 10 plots of land that fall in this stretch of 300 ft that will be cleared.
The affected persons will be offered free house lots in a new housing scheme in the Hope area as well as financial compensation. According to the Housing Minister, 68 persons were recently relocated from the Hope estate immediately in front of Dochfour to a new scheme a short distance away.
This was necessary to facilitate the construction. Alli said that the residents from Dochfour may be moved to this new scheme.
Meanwhile, a technical team comprising persons from the Ministry of Housing, Guyana Lands & Surveys Commission, the Privatisation Unit of NICIL and the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA), will be ensuring that this process goes smoothly. According to Persaud this team will be working on settling all the necessary issues as regards relocation and the financial compensation that these persons will receive. The Privatisation Unit of NICIL will be ensuring that the owners of these properties get a fair deal, Persaud emphasised.
However, some residents were clearly opposed to having to move, while others were very concerned about the loss of their farmlands. One of the more outspoken residents was farmer Roy Doodnauth who said that he did not mind being relocated but who was very concerned about losing his farmland. Doodnauth is one of the farmers who was severely affected by the recent prolonged flooding that hit this village
during the month of December. He was assured by Persaud that adequate measures will be put in place.
Meanwhile, another resident said that it was unfair to force people to move after they would have lived all their lives in a particular place. This female resident also suggested that moving persons meant that many farmers were being taken further away from their farms, which further complicate their lives.
Others openly questioned the wisdom of putting the canal through the Hope/Dochfour area, but Head of the NDIA, Lionel Wordsworth told residents that this was being done based on engineering advice. He said the authorities had considered constructing the channel through Nabaclis, but were advised that this was the best option.
However, several of these residents opined that the engineers should have consulted with the residents in the area before coming up with any formal plan because they are very knowledgeable about the area, and about issues related to drainage.
