Belarusians start getting residence permits closer to future nuclear power plant

The authorities and scientists have not decided on the building site for the future nuclear power plant yet. However, people have started trying to get residence permits in villages close to the possible place of its construction. They hope to get free accommodation after the villages are demolished.
The head of Ausaynkauski rural district of Mahileu Region Mikalai Ynachanka informed ERB about it.

Mіkalai Yanchanka: “There was no official announcement that something would be built here. So nobody knows whether the villages are to be demolished or not. But I know that some people who heard rumours about it started getting residence permits there. They are hoping for something. But we have not received any orders about limiting the issue of residence permits. I do not remember exactly, but there were several people who registered there in summer”.

Land-surveyors are examining the territory not far from Kukshynava and Hryvets villages in Ausyankausku rural district. They are trying to find out if it suits for construction of a nuclear power plant. However, nobody can guarantee that it will be built there.

According to him, a house in the villages can be bought for 100 or 150 USD. However, nobody is eager to buy them now. Probably people are waiting for the decision of scientists about the building site for the nuclear power plant before investing even a small amount of money in the hope of getting a good flat.

Mіkalai Yanchanka: “Nobody has addressed me with such offers yet”.

Speaking about the nuclear power plant, he said people’s attitude to it differed. However, the majority of them are negative. He refused to tell us his own opinion about it.

Mіkalai Yanchanka: “People are negative here and there. I cannot answer … I’d like you to hear it from someone else”.

At the same time, the head of the rural district says that people hope to get good, lucrative jobs at the building site.

Mіkalai Yanchanka: “Everyone hopes so! They are unlikely to need only “white collars” there. They will need workers too. So people are hoping to get placement there”.

There are 42 people living in the village of Kukshnava. 12 of them are capable of working. There are only 18 inhabitants of Hryvets and only 8 of them are able to work. That’s the information presented by the rural district. ERB got other information from an inhabitant of Hryvets Hanna Ivanauna.

Hanna Іvanauna: “There are no workers in our village, neither there are in Kukshynava. There is a village Kalyonka 2 kilometres from here. Three people work in a brigade there. There are several men working as machine-operators. About 2 women look after calves. There are pensioners in almost any other village that is close to Kukshynava”.

They live on their pensions, that’s about 300-350 thousands per month. She says they have heard about the construction of a nuclear power plant but have never heard of anyone buying houses in nearby villages – nobody said anything like that.

Hanna Іvanauna: “I have not heard anything about people buying houses here. There is an advertisement of some woman from Horki willing to buy a house in Zubry or Kukshynava. But there is nothing else. There are no houses that could be bought here. There is one house. You cannot buy it to demolish, but it is possible to live in it”.

The woman says that elderly people do not want to live close to the nuclear power plant. But its not radiation they are afraid of – they are afraid of resettlement. They want to live the rest of their lives in their houses.

Hanna Іvanauna: “We are all old here. They say we may be given new flats, but we just want to live the rest of our lives in our own houses”.

In the end she complained that nobody asked them their opinion about this construction. She said that someone would decide everything for them and they would be left wandering around the world in their declining years…