Itanagar: Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee on Wednesday described the denial of an appointment with Vice-President C P Radhakrishnan during his visit to the state as “politically motivated and deeply unfortunate”.In a press statement, APCC general secretary and spokesperson Kon Jirjo Jotham alleged that the party was deliberately prevented from submitting a memorandum on critical issues concerning Arunachal, despite seeking an appointment through chief secretary on Sept 4.The proposed memorandum called for urgent central intervention on border security, infrastructure, constitutional safeguards and environmental protection.APCC sought the creation of a dedicated Arunachal Regiment in Indian Army to increase the recruitment of local youth, draw on their knowledge of the terrain and create employment opportunities through special recruitment drives in frontier villages.It also demanded a high-level, all-party parliamentary delegation to visit Taksing and other vulnerable border areas to assess the conditions faced by troops and frontier communities.The party called for faster construction of all-weather roads to strategically important remote areas and uninterrupted logistical, operational and medical support for security forces deployed along the Himalayan frontier.On constitutional safeguards, APCC demanded a comprehensive amendment to Article 371H to provide protections on a par with Articles 371A and 371G. It said the safeguards were necessary to protect indigenous rights over land, forests, water and customary practices.The party supported environmentally sustainable small and medium run-of-the-river hydropower projects but opposed mega dams. It rejected the proposed 11,200 MW Siang Upper Multipurpose Project, citing environmental degradation, seismic risks, downstream disaster threats and the possible displacement of indigenous communities.APCC demanded an immediate halt to what it described as coercive efforts to advance the project and sought independent, transparent and comprehensive basin-level impact assessments before any further action.The party said Arunachal needed economic growth, but development should not come at the cost of its people, rivers, forests and ecological security.
