15,000 Narmada dam oustees to be evicted in Madhya Pradesh by July 31: June 5-7 'Save Narmada' to protest move

By Our Representative
The Madhya Pradesh government is all set to evict around 15,000 families by July-end in the Narmada Valley, even as Gujarat government is readying itself to close down the 30-odd gates on the Narmada dam in order to take the water level in the dam’s reservoir from the present 121.92 metres to 138.64 metres.
Quoting official figures, top anti-dam activist Medha Patkar has said, 8,200 families to be evicted will be from Badwani district and 6,132 families from district Dhar, apart from a few families from Khargone district.
Calling these figures are an “underestimates”, in an email alert to Counterview, Patkar says, “All this is being done without even full compliance with the latest order of Supreme Court that directs complete rehabilitation and vacating the lands on receiving the cash packages by farmers.”
Yet, she says, “The police and revenue officials are visiting one village after another with drone cameras to photograph long distance visuals of the areas to be vacated.
Pointing out that all this is not proving to be easy for the state’s officials, Patkar says, “They are facing questions and wrath of people who are not ready to move out without all rehabilitation and entitlement.”
To give expression to this wrath, Patkar says, her organization, Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) has decided to hold a three-day "Save Narmada, Save Life" yatra, starting at Indore, Madhya Pradesh, on June 5, and ending at Vadodara, Gujarat, on June 7.
The aim of the yatra, according to her, would d be to campaign against the effort to close the Narmada dam’s 30 odd gates to store water up to the full reservoir level – 138.64 metres from the present 121.92 metres.
Accusing the BJP government at the Centre, and in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat, of forming “an unholy alliance of lies and web of deceit”, Patkar says, the move would “drown thousands of families from the 192 villages and one town by closing the gates of the Narmada Dam.”
“We have exposed their lies of complete resettlement and rehabilitation (R&R), proved as recently by the February judgment of the Supreme Court”, Patkar claims, regretting, the authorities remain “callous” violating “every order of the Supreme Court and many orders of Grievance Redressal Authority of Madhya Pradesh.”
Pointing out that “even today the resettlement sites remain incomplete”, Patkar says, “A few hundred families even in Maharashtra are yet to be resettled with land and new sites to be established. Besides, those resettled in Gujarat years ago are on the roads asking for their due rights which still remain unfulfilled.”
Wondering why are Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra supporting this “devastation” caused the Narmada dam in the downstream, Patkar says, neither of the two states are to get even drop of water, and the only beneficiaries would be “the rich corporates and big urban centres” of Gujarat.
Finding that Narmada waters may not reach them, Patkar says, at several places “even Gujarat’s own farmers are on the streets”, adding, even electricity to be produced from the dam’s power houses would go waste, as Madhya Pradesh, which is supposed to get bulk of it, “does not require it any more.”

Comments

Unknown said…

Isn't this the same lady who got thrashed in the recent elections? So much for the "voice of people". It's so funny that it's tragic.

May 26, 2017

'Enough evidence' in Indian tradition to support legal basis for same-sex marriage

By Iyce Malhotra, Joseph Mathai, Sandeep Chachra* The ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court on same-sex marriage provides space for much-needed conversations on issues that have hitherto remained “invisible” or engaged with patriarchal locker room humour. We must recognize that people with diverse sexualities and complex gender identities have faced discrimination, stigma and decades of oppression. Their issues have mainly remained buried in dominant social discourse, and many view them with deep insecurities.

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Victim of communal violence, Christians in Manipur want Church leadership to speak up

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ* The first eleven days of May 2023 have, in many ways, been a defining period of Indian history! Plenty has happened in a rapid-fire stream of events. Ironically, each one of them are indicators of how crimes and the criminalisation of society has become the ‘new norm’; these include, the May Day rallies with a focus on the four labour codes which are patently against the rights of workers; the U S Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released its Annual Report on 1 May stating that conditions for religious freedom in India “continued to worsen in 2022”; the continued protest by the Indian women wrestlers at Jantar Mantar for the expulsion of the chief of the Indian Wrestlers Federation on very serious allegations; the Elections in Karnataka on 10 May (with communalism and corruption as the mainstay); the release of the fake, derogative and insensitive film ‘The Kerala Story’; the release of World Free Press Index on 3 May which places India

Delhi HC rules in favour of retired Air Force officer 'overcharged' for Covid treatment

By Rosamma Thomas* In a decision of May 22, 2023, the Delhi High Court ruled in favour of petitioner Group Captain Suresh Khanna who was under treatment at CK Birla Hospital, Gurugram, between April 28 and May 5, 2021, for a period of eight days, for Covid-19 pneumonia. The petitioner had to pay Rs 3,55,286 as treatment costs, but the Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) only reimbursed him for Rs 1,83,748, on the basis of government-approved rates.

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.

Unlike other revolutionaries, Hindutva icon wrote 5 mercy petitions to British masters

By Shamsul Islam* The Hindutva icon VD Savarkar of the RSS-BJP rulers of India submitted not one, two,or three but five mercy petitions to the British masters! Savarkarites argue: “There are no evidences to prove that Savarkar collaborated with the British for his release from jail. In fact, his appeal for release was a ruse. He was well aware of the political developments outside and wanted to be part of it. So he kept requesting for his release. But the British authorities did not trust him a bit” (YD Phadke, ‘A complex Hero’, "The Indian Expres"s, August 31, 2004)

India joining US sponsored trade pillar to hurt Indian farmers, 'promote' GM seeds, food

Counterview Desk As many as 32 civil society organisations (CSOs), in a letter to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and India joining the trade pillar, have said that its provisions will allow the US to ensure a more favourable regulatory regime “for enhancing its exports of genetically modified (GM) seeds and GM food”, underlining, it will “significantly hurt the livelihoods of Indian farmers.”

Polygamy in India "down" in 45 yrs: Muslims' from 5.7 to 2.55%, Hindus' 5.8 to 1.77%, "common" in SCs, STs

By Rajiv Shah Amidst All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) justifying polygamy, saying it “meets social and moral needs and the provision for it stems from concern and sympathy for women”, facts suggest the the practice is down from 5.7 per cent of Muslim families in 1961 to 2.55 per cent in 2006.

Modi govt 'wholly untrustworthy' on Covid data, censored criticism on pandemic: Lancet

By Rajiv Shah One of the world’s most prestigious health journals, brought out from England, has sharply criticised the Narendra Modi government for being “wholly untrustworthy on Covid-19 health data”, stating, the “official government figures place deaths at more than 530 000, while WHO excess death estimates for 2020 and 2021 are near 4·7 million.”

Search This Blog