Apprehending massive submergence, 10-km human chain along Narmada river opposes Govt of India move on dam gates

By A Representative
The powerful anti-dam organization, Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), stepped up pressure on Monday by creating a unique 10 km long human chain against the Narmada Control Authority (NCA), which is to meet on May 9 to decide on closing the Narmada dam’s gates, saying such a step would submerge 244 villages and a town.
The NCA is the Government of India's inter-state body established under the Narmada (Water Dispute) Tribunal Award, is to finalize the dam’s height and other issues related with the Narmada project, including rehabilitating dam oustees.
Participated by nearly 5,000 people from the Narmada valley, the human chain touched on borders of living village communities and on the banks of the river. The protesters raised slogans and placards against closing the dam’s gates, which would allow the dam’s reservoir to store water up to 139 meters.
In a statement NBA said, “After 31 years struggle, 15,000 families have been rehabilitated, but very few of them have been resettled in Madhya Pradesh. Nearly 40,000 families live in the villages which face submergence.”

Project affected persons – women, men, children, farmers, fishermen, potters and labours –blocked Rajghat Bridge on the river in Badwani, on the border of Gujarat, holding a public meeting there.
Among those who joined the human chain included former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijay Singh, a known Narmada dam votary of yester-years, along with his Congress supporters.
Participants said, thousands of families are yet to get the new package in lieu of land, announced by the Supreme Court. “Thousands of landless have not received any package”, one of them, Devram Kanhera, said.
Added Pemal Behan from Dhanora village, “We can’t build our houses with meager compensation. The resettlement sites are not ready and widows, poor single women have no support to raise a plinth.”
People from scheduled areas, especially tribals, said they would hold special Gram Sabhas in the coming days and pass resolutions bringing out facts and figures related to balanced rehabilitation.

Their resolutions will form the legal basis for any further decision.

Addressing protesters, NBA leader Medha Patkar said, “Lack of monitoring of rehabilitation and environmental measures have resulted in fraudulent reports and affidavits on compensation to the dam oustees.”
Meanwhile, in a statement, prominent citizens, including CPI-M’s farmers’ leader Hannan Mollah, well-known religious leader Swami Agnivesh, socialist Dr Sunilam, activist Vimal Bhai, and journalist Sumit Chakravarty said that “it is a countdown towards impounding waters in the 214 km land stretch where more than 40,000 families are residing till date.”
“There are standing crops and massive plantations; thousands of pucca houses, schools, other public and private services erected; hundreds of temples, tens of mosques (as opposed to three temples claimed by the authorities), adivasi gods and worship places, all of which will be submerged”, they said.
“There are lakhs of trees in the submergence area. People are continuing with their daily lives, and except for a few villages in the hilly mountainous region, falling in Alirajpur district, all other villages in the plains, at least 150 have large populations (hundreds of families in each) with functioning panchayats”, they added.

Comments

Grueling summer ahead: Cuttack’s alarming health trends and what they mean for Odisha

By Sudhansu R Das The preparation to face the summer should begin early in Odisha. People in the state endure long, grueling summer months starting from mid-February and extending until the end of October. This prolonged heat adversely affects productivity, causes deaths and diseases, and impacts agriculture, tourism and the unorganized sector. The social, economic and cultural life of the state remains severely disrupted during the peak heat months.

Stronger India–Russia partnership highlights a missed energy breakthrough

By N.S. Venkataraman* The recent visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to India was widely publicized across several countries and has attracted significant global attention. The warmth with which Mr. Putin was received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was particularly noted, prompting policy planners worldwide to examine the implications of this cordial relationship for the global economy and political climate. India–Russia relations have stood on a strong foundation for decades and have consistently withstood geopolitical shifts. This is in marked contrast to India’s ties with the United States, which have experienced fluctuations under different U.S. administrations.

From natural farming to fair prices: Young entrepreneurs show a new path

By Bharat Dogra There have been frequent debates on agro-business companies not showing adequate concern for the livelihoods of small farmers. Farmers’ unions have often protested—generally with good reason—that while they do not receive fair returns despite high risks and hard work, corporate interests that merely process the crops produced by farmers earn disproportionately high profits. Hence, there is a growing demand for alternative models of agro-business development that demonstrate genuine commitment to protecting farmer livelihoods.

The Vande Mataram debate and the politics of manufactured controversy

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The recent Vande Mataram debate in Parliament was never meant to foster genuine dialogue. Each political party spoke past the other, addressing its own constituency, ensuring that clips went viral rather than contributing to meaningful deliberation. The objective was clear: to construct a Hindutva narrative ahead of the Bengal elections. Predictably, the Lok Sabha will likely expunge the opposition’s “controversial” remarks while retaining blatant inaccuracies voiced by ministers and ruling-party members. The BJP has mastered the art of inserting distortions into parliamentary records to provide them with a veneer of historical legitimacy.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

The cost of being Indian: How inequality and market logic redefine rights

By Vikas Gupta We, the people of India, are engaged in a daily tryst—read: struggle—for basic human rights. For the seemingly well-to-do, the wish list includes constant water supply, clean air, safe roads, punctual public transportation, and crime-free neighbourhoods. For those further down the ladder, the struggle is starker: food that fills the stomach, water that doesn’t sicken, medicines that don’t kill, houses that don’t flood, habitats at safe distances from polluted streams or garbage piles, and exploitation-free environments in the public institutions they are compelled to navigate.

Why India must urgently strengthen its policies for an ageing population

By Bharat Dogra A quiet but far-reaching demographic transformation is reshaping much of the world. As life expectancy rises and birth rates fall, societies are witnessing a rapid increase in the proportion of older people. This shift has profound implications for public policy, and the need to strengthen frameworks for healthy and secure ageing has never been more urgent. India is among the countries where these pressures will intensify most sharply in the coming decades.

Thota Sitaramaiah: An internal pillar of an underground organisation

By Harsh Thakor* Thota Sitaramaiah was regarded within his circles as an example of the many individuals whose work in various underground movements remained largely unknown to the wider public. While some leaders become visible through organisational roles or media attention, many others contribute quietly, without public recognition. Sitaramaiah was considered one such figure. He passed away on December 8, 2025, at the age of 65.

Proposals for Babri Masjid, Ram Temple spark fears of polarisation before West Bengal polls

By A Representative A political debate has emerged in West Bengal following recent announcements about plans for new religious structures in Murshidabad district, including a proposed mosque to be named Babri Masjid and a separate announcement by a BJP leader regarding the construction of a Ram temple in another location within Behrampur.

Search This Blog