Inadequacies surrounding compensation for households affected by Khe Bo Hydropower Plant
(Baonghean.vn) - All of their land was flooded at the same time after Khe Bo Hydropower Plant stored water, but one household was compensated at a price of 6,000 VND/m2, while the other household only received half that amount.
Compensation price "difference"
For many years, Mr. Luong Dinh Tien (63 years old), in Tam Quang commune, Tuong Duong district, has been sending petitions everywhere to reclaim his rights because his land plots were affected by the Khe Bo Hydropower Project. Mr. Tien is one of 25 households in Tam Quang commune whose land was flooded under the hydropower reservoir, but was only compensated at a price of 3,000 VND/m2Meanwhile, the remaining households were compensated 6,000 VND/m2, even though all the plots of land were flooded at the same time.
“They said that because my land was registered for compensation in 2019, only that price would be applied. Households who registered before and after that time would receive double the price. But it was not my fault that the compensation was registered late,” Mr. Tien said indignantly.
In 1998, Mr. Tien was assigned 13.3 hectares of land by Tuong Duong district for a period of 50 years. By 2007, 7 hectares of this land were recovered to build Khe Bo Hydropower Plant. However, Mr. Tien did not receive compensation for this land. After many years of complaints, he learned that the reason for not being compensated was because the land was re-divided into Tam Dinh commune. Therefore, he had to get the opinion of the village chief about the origin and have the Tam Dinh commune People's Committee confirm that there was no dispute to be eligible to consider compiling a land compensation file. Meanwhile, the Chairman of Tam Dinh commune People's Committee and the village chief both refused to sign to confirm the origin of the land. In exchange for these two signatures, Tam Dinh commune asked Mr. Tien to return the remaining 6.3 hectares of flooded land. Later, although Mr. Tien submitted a return application, the Chairman of the commune People's Committee as well as the village Management Board still refused to sign the confirmation. Tam Dinh commune then asked Mr. Tien to "support" before he would sign.
After many negotiations, Tam Dinh commune agreed to reduce this amount to 40 million VND. 3 years ago, right afterNghe An Newspaper reports the incident, Secretary of Tuong Duong District Party Committee directly directed Tam Dinh commune to return 40 million VND to Mr. Tien, and at the same time, urgently complete the procedures for this household.
After a long journey of complaints, Mr. Tien finally had a file made to compensate for 7 hectares of flooded land, however, at this time he was only compensated at a price of 3,000 VND/m2Thinking it was unfair, Mr. Tien continued to file a complaint.
According to the reporter's investigation, not only Mr. Tien, in Tam Quang commune, there are up to 25 households that are also subject to this compensation price. In addition, there are many other households in Tam Dinh and Tam Thai communes. These are all households that have had their compensation records made during the 2016-2019 period. As for households that had their compensation records made before and after this period, they were all compensated at double the price. Meanwhile, all of these plots of land were flooded at the same time, when Khe Bo Hydropower Plant stored water in 2013.
Disadvantaged people
According to a leader of the People's Committee of Tuong Duong district, the Khe Bo Hydropower Project started construction in 2007 and the water storage project was put into operation in 2013. However, to date, the land acquisition, compensation, support and resettlement of some items have not been completed. Especially the land acquisition, compensation and support for agricultural land, land prices for compensation calculation, land allocation, and issuance of land use right certificates.
Regarding land pricing, the project started to implement land compensation and support from 2007 to present, so the price of production forest land has changed both up and down, specifically: When starting to implement the project, the price of production forest land according to the land price list of Tuong Duong district approved by the Provincial People's Committee was 6,000 VND/m2.
By 2016, implementing the 2013 Land Law, when building specific land prices to serve the work of compensation and support for land of Khe Bo Hydropower Project, Tuong Duong District People's Committee compiled and submitted to the Provincial People's Committee, accordingly, proposed to continue applying the price of production forest land at 6,000 VND/m2to ensure the overall fairness of the project. However, without the approval of the Provincial People's Committee, the price of production forest land was reduced to 3,000 VND/m2.
“By 2020, implementing Decision No. 63 of the Provincial People's Committee on promulgating the land price list of all types from January 1, 2020 to December 31, 2024 in Tuong Duong district, the price of production forest land is 6,000/m2, equal to the land price applied to the project from 2007 to 2015", the leader of the district People's Committee said and informed that currently, households receiving compensation in the period of 2016-2019 have many petitions and recommendations to consider applying additional land prices for production forest land for the entire project with a common price of 6,000 VND/m2.
Also according to the leader of the People's Committee of Tuong Duong district, currently, the People's Committee of Tuong Duong district has sent a document requesting the Provincial People's Committee and related departments and branches to consider allowing the application of production forest land prices in the period of 2016-2019 for the Khe Bo Hydropower Project from 3,000 VND/m2up to 6,000 VND/m2, to create consensus between the people and the investor, ensure fairness, avoid petitions and complaints, and at the same time, ensure the legitimate rights of land users. Because the land has been flooded since April 2013 and people have not used the land since then; due to some problems, it was not until the period of 2016-2019 that the conditions were met to prepare a land compensation file. Among them, there is the case of Mr. Luong Dinh Tien.
Not only are there inadequacies in land compensation prices, many households whose land is affected by Khe Bo Hydropower Plant are also disadvantaged by many other policies. According to regulations, when granting the first Land Use Right Certificate to poor households, ethnic minority households in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions, border areas, and islands, people are exempted from land use fees. At the time Tuong Duong district granted the Certificate to Tam Quang, Tam Dinh, Tam Thai, Thach Giam, and Xa Luong communes, they were all extremely difficult communes, so they were exempted from land use fees (before 2014).
According to the leader of the People's Committee of Tuong Duong district, at that time, households affected by a part of the land area acquired by the State to implement the Khe Bo Hydropower Project had not been granted a Certificate because the investor had not yet measured and adjusted the land records. According to regulations, it is necessary to "support the cost of adjusting the land management records in the form of payment by the investor to the competent land management agency. In addition, no amount of money, including fees and charges, is allowed to be collected".
Meanwhile, currently, the communes within the scope of influence of the Khe Bo Hydropower Project, including Tam Quang, Tam Dinh, Tam Thai, Xa Luong and Thach Giam town, have reached the new rural finish line and are out of the extremely disadvantaged communes. Therefore, according to regulations, financial obligations regarding land must be fulfilled when granting Land Use Rights Certificates. This makes these households believe that it is unfair.
“To create consensus among the people, ensure fairness and avoid complaints and lawsuits from the people, and at the same time, ensure the legitimate rights of land users, the District People's Committee has also proposed the Provincial People's Committee and related departments and branches to consider applying the policy at the time of reservoir water storage, specifically, before May 13, 2013 to ensure rights and fairness like other households in the area,” the district leader added.
In addition, households affected by Khe Bo Hydropower Plant are also not entitled to support policies on training, career conversion and job search. In the case of agricultural land recovery from households and individuals directly engaged in agricultural production in the form of cash support, the support level is twice the price of agricultural land of the same type in the price list issued by the Provincial People's Committee./.
.jpeg "Nhà máy Thuỷ điện Khe Bố kịp thời điều tiết, đảm bảo an toàn hồ chứa và khu vực hạ du trong mưa lũ")
