Cabinet agrees Bt600m Rasi Salai Dam compensation

Cabinet agrees Bt600m Rasi Salai Dam compensation

By The Nation

After three decades of Si Sa Ket, Surin and Roi Et village protests against the Rasi Salai Dam, the Cabinet on Tuesday approved almost Bt600 million in compensation for the last batch of affected farmers, said Royal Irrigation Department (RID) deputy chief Manas Kamnerdmanee.

The RID would check the entitlement for compensation and pay Bt32,000 per rai within two years, he said.

The RID, which took over the dam project in 2002 from the Energy Ministry, would now help Deputy Prime Minister Prajin Juntong's committee tasked to provide aid to those affected as confirmed by a technology-assisted demarcation survey to prove compensation entitlement. 

From 1997-2017, Bt1.927 billion in compensation had been paid to affected farmers covering over 60,000 rai, while the recently approved Bt600 million would go to farmers with 8,469 rai of land. The compensation to the dam-affected farmers would total more than Bt2.5 billion, the government said.

The Energy Ministry from 1989-92 stored water from the Mul River, flooding large areas of farmland, leading to demands for compensation. The dam was finished in 1994. 

Residents demanded social and environmental impact studies. Movements formed over the past 25 years by the Rasi Salai Dam residents have led to government-funded social reform in the region.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/breakingnews/30367476

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