A Khơ Mú ethnic family who has not been able to stabilise their lives after years of giving their land for construction. — Photo nongnghiep.vn

NGHỆ AN — Thousands of local households have had to relocate to build Bản Vẽ Hydropower Plant in Tương Dương District in the central province of Nghệ An. However, almost two decades after giving their land up for the plant's construction, dozens of households still wait for new, permanent homes.

In the resettlement area of Khe Ò Village, Yên Na Commune, most people have abandoned their resettlement homes, leaving only two families living there. In the nearby resettlement area of Khe Cỏ Chánh, Bản Chóng Village, people live in fear as their homes are not fit for purpose.

The Khe Ò resettlement area was built in 2005 with infrastructure such as kindergartens, electricity, and running water.

More than 40 households affected by the hydropower plant's construction were resettled there.

In 2010, seven households living in high-risk landslide areas were resettled to a safer place after a huge rock fell on a house after heavy rain.

For various reasons, however, dozens of other families left to find new places to live, though some returned to live illegally at the hydropower construction site.

Lương Văn Thắng, a resident, said the houses in the resettlement area were solid, but the rock falls threatened their lives.

Many have moved out of the resettlement area, leaving their houses abandoned.

"Some households have left but sometimes come back to raise livestock. Only two families are currently living here, including my family," Thắng said.

In addition to landslides, the roads are not good and far from the district centre, said Lương Thị Huynh, a resident.

In Khe Cỏ Chánh resettlement area, Khe Chóng Village, resettled people have to live in anxiety and worry when rock fall and cracks appear.

The local authorities have repeatedly petitioned the competent agencies, but so far, it has not been resolved.

A resident in Khe Chóng Village, Vi Thị Xoa, said the mountain had appeared many cracks after the heavy rain in 2018, making people worry about the risk of landslides after each rain.

People want to move to another place, but they can't.

Vi Thanh Tùng, chairman of the People's Committee of Yên Na Commune, said there are three resettlement areas for people affected by the construction of the hydropower plant.

The committee has planned to relocate people living in Khe Chóng and Khe Ò villages to another area, but the project has not been approved due to a lack of funds, Tùng said. — VNS