Gujarat govt begins "grabbing" land allocated to Narmada dam oustees 15 yrs ago invoking town planning law

Narmada oustees

By A Representative
In move without precedence, the Gujarat government has begun to evict Narmada dam oustees, settled in resettlement colonies in the state. One such oustee, Bijalbhai, originally from village Shurpan of Dediapada taluka in Bharuch district, was resettled about 15 years ago at a resettlement site called Dabhoinada in district Vadodara. On September 2, officials of Dabhoi municipality told him to vacate from his plot, survey No 1,434 area, an agricultural land measuring 1.37 acres, allocated to him as part of resettlement entitlement.
A Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) statement quoting the incident, said, the officials came with police force, vacated him from his plot, forcibly took him to the Dabhoi police station, and demolished his hut, which he also used as a small tea shop. “The municipal authorities issued a notice to Bijalbhai bhai on August 12, in the presence of officials from the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Ltd (SSNNL), which said there was a court order, and its execution demanded that Bijalbhai should vacate the land”, the NBA said in a statement.
Forwarded by Medha Patkar, top social activist and leader of NBA, the statement said, the municipal authorities has applied the state government’s town planning Act, which required Bijalbhai to part with 40 per cent of his land for town infrastructure development. “When Bijalbhai, a tribal, his family and other villagers protested, the municipal officials threatened other resettlers that the town planning Act would apply on them as well. Bijalbhai was told, if he resisted he would be arrested, so he had better sign up papers handing over the plot”, the statement said.
In fact, according to the statement, Bijalbhai and others showed the title of the agri-plot which was allotted to them in 1999 as part of resettlement and rehabilitation (R&R) package. This prompted Patkar and 50 other representatives of resettlement sites and other activists to reach the site to lodge a complaint with the police over forcible eviction threatened upon Bijalbhai. “The police station refused to file a complaint”, the statement complained.
Bijalbhai’s case is not an isolated incident, according to the NBA. “It has been observed that Gujarat has gone all out to vacate as many persons as possible from the plots of land allotted to the adivasi oustees. Since the land prices in and around Dabhoi, as also in other talukas, have escalated many times, original landowners and the state’s statuary agencies are putting pressure on adivasis to return the land”, the statement said, calling it a “conspiracy” against the oustees.
“Earlier, resistance was put up by the people of Dabhoinada resettlement colony under the leadership of Shankarbhai Tadvi and others associated with the NBA. They were sought to be driven away by grabbers of land”, the statement said, adding, “A list of about hundred families resettled in Gujarat, that included some oustees from Madhya Pradesh as well, was prepared and the government authorities conveyed to them that they would have to vacate the plots, though they were their rightful owners for the last 10-15 years”.
It may be noted that the town planning Act is being invoke (click HERE to read) to evict farmers from their land in special investment regions (SIRs) of Gujarat, sought to be promoted as modern townships. The farmers from Ahmedabad district’s Dholera SIR, which is being promoted as one of the 100 smart cities of India, have already received notices to hand over between 40 and 50 per cent of their land under the town planning Act. The matter came up as a major point of contention at the environmental public hearing for Dholera SIR, held on January 3, 2014.

Comments

Plastic burning in homes threatens food, water and air across Global South: Study

By Jag Jivan In a groundbreaking study spanning 26 countries across the Global South , researchers have uncovered the widespread and concerning practice of households burning plastic waste as a fuel for cooking, heating, and other domestic needs. The research, published in Nature Communications , reveals that this hazardous method of managing both waste and energy poverty is driven by systemic failures in municipal services and the unaffordability of clean alternatives, posing severe risks to human health and the environment.

Economic superpower’s social failure? Inequality, malnutrition and crisis of India's democracy

By Vikas Meshram India may be celebrated as one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, but a closer look at who benefits from that growth tells a starkly different story. The recently released World Inequality Report 2026 lays bare a country sharply divided by wealth, privilege and power. According to the report, nearly 65 percent of India’s total wealth is owned by the richest 10 percent of its population, while the bottom half of the country controls barely 6.4 percent. The top one percent—around 14 million people—holds more than 40 percent, the highest concentration since 1961. Meanwhile, the female labour force participation rate is a dismal 15.7 percent.

The greatest threat to our food system: The aggressive push for GM crops

By Bharat Dogra Thanks to the courageous resistance of several leading scientists who continue to speak the truth despite increasing pressures from the powerful GM crop and GM food lobby , the many-sided and in some contexts irreversible environmental and health impacts of GM foods and crops, as well as the highly disruptive effects of this technology on farmers, are widely known today.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Stands 'exposed': Cavalier attitude towards rushed construction of Char Dham project

By Bharat Dogra* The nation heaved a big sigh of relief when the 41 workers trapped in the under-construction Silkyara-Barkot tunnel (Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand) were finally rescued on November 28 after a 17-day rescue effort. All those involved in the rescue effort deserve a big thanks of the entire country. The government deserves appreciation for providing all-round support.

'Restructuring' Sahitya Akademi: Is the ‘Gujarat model’ reaching Delhi?

By Prakash N. Shah* A fortnight and a few days have slipped past that grim event. It was as if the wedding preparations were complete and the groom’s face was about to be unveiled behind the ceremonial tinsel. At 3 PM on December 18, a press conference was poised to announce the Sahitya Akademi Awards .

The war on junk food: Why India must adopt global warning labels

By Jag Jivan The global health landscape is witnessing a decisive shift toward aggressive regulation of the food industry, a movement highlighted by two significant policy developments shared by Dr. Arun Gupta of the Nutrition Advocacy for Public Interest (NAPi).

The illusion of nuclear abundance: Why NTPC’s expansion demands public scrutiny

By Shankar Sharma* The recent news that NTPC is scouting 30 potential sites across India for a massive nuclear power expansion should be a wake-up call for every citizen. While the state-owned utility frames this as a bold stride toward a 100,000 MW nuclear capacity by 2047, a cold look at India’s nuclear saga over the last few decades suggests this ambition may be more illusory than achievable. More importantly, it carries implications that could fundamentally alter the safety, environment, and economic health of our communities.

Madhav Gadgil: The ecologist who taught India to listen to nature

By Raj Kumar Sinha* Among the exceptional individuals who laid the intellectual and scientific foundations of environmental conservation in India—and challenged the dominant development discourse—Professor Madhav Dhondo Keshav Gadgil stands as a towering figure. He was not only a pioneering ecologist, but also among the first to view environmental protection through the lens of democracy, local communities and social justice.

Search This Blog