Modi to kick-start $87 billion river inter-linking project "without eco-clearance", top environmentalist objects

By A Representative
Is the Government of India set to go ahead with its controversial $87 billion Ket-Betwa scheme to connect two major rivers without environmental clearance? It would seem so if, following a major report on this, facts revealed by senior environmentalist Himanshu Thakkar are any indication.
The scheme involves construction of a dam on the Ken river, also known as the Karnavati, in north-central India and a 22-km (14-mile) canal connecting it to the shallow Betwa. Both rivers flow through vast areas of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, both under BJP rule. The project is supposed to provide the initial boost, required for other proposed river interlinking projects.
Thakkar, taking strong exception to the reported clearance of the the project, says, "The environmental clearance does not exist, final forest clearance does not exist, conditional wild life clearance is under scrutiny by the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), which is to be followed by Supreme Court scrutiny and inter-state agreement between MP and UP."
In fact, Thakkar says, "The actual Environmental Clearance letter is yet to be issued", something for which one has to just see "the the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change's (MoEFCC's) Environmental Clearance website", adding, all other clearances are conditional and not valid till forest and wildlife recommendations happen.
Worse, says Thakkar, even the are environmental public hearings for the the canal and the downstream affected areas, as required for clearing the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report, which, according to him is "flawed". Given all these facts, Thakkar says, the claim that there exists a Cabinet note to allow the project to go ahead has little meaning, as the Cabinet note "is not a statutory document."
Despite these steps, considered necessary for moving ahead with the project, Modi is said to have personally pushed through clearances for its first phase of the project, "despite opposition from environmentalists, tiger lovers and a former royal family." Sanjeev Balyan, the junior water resources minister, has been quoted as saying that “we have got clearances in record time, with the last round of clearances coming in only this year,”
The 425-km Ken flows through a tiger reserve, with the government planning to clear out 6.5% of the forest reserve to build the dam, relocating nearly 2,000 families from 10 villages. Further, the proposed 77-metre high, 2-km long dam on the Ken River will submerge 9,000 hectares of mostly forest land. A big portion will come from the Panna Tiger Reserve, near the UNESCO world heritage site of Khajuraho Temple in Madhya Pradesh. The forest reserve, a major tourist attraction, is home to 30-35 tigers and nearly 500 vultures.
Yet, there are indications that the Union Cabinet is likely to give its final go-ahead for the project within a couple of weeks, after which Modi would flag off construction at the site, which is situated "about 805 km (500 miles) from New Delhi, currently marked only by rows of red concrete slabs placed on the ground."
This will be followed by the government "finishing up paperwork on projects in western India linking the Par-Tapi with the Narmada and the Daman Ganga with the Pinjal. The projects involve Modi’s home state of Gujarat and neighbouring Maharashtra, which includes Mumbai, both also ruled by the BJP."
The river-linking projects was contemplated under Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1981. Repeated attempts to go ahead with its different components got stalled because state governments sparred over water sharing contracts. This time, officials wonder, starting with projects that are all in BJP-ruled states would see "smooth negotiations."

Comments

Academics urge Azim Premji University to drop FIR against Student Reading Circle

By A Representative A group of academics and civil society members has issued an open letter to the leadership of Azim Premji University expressing concern over the filing of a police complaint that led to an FIR against a student-run reading circle following a recent incident of violence on campus. The signatories state that they hold the university in high regard for its commitment to constitutional values, critical inquiry and ethical public engagement, and argue that it is precisely because of this reputation that the present development is troubling.

Was Netaji forced to alter face, die in obscurity in USSR in 1975? Was he so meek?

By Rajiv Shah This should sound almost hilarious. Not only did Subhas Chandra Bose not die in a plane crash in Taipei, nor was he the mysterious Gumnami Baba who reportedly passed away on 16 September 1985 in Ayodhya, but we are now told that he actually died in 1975—date unknown—“in oblivion” somewhere in the former Soviet Union. Which city? Moscow? No one seems to know.

UAPA action against Telangana activist: Criminalising legitimate democratic activity?

By A Representative The National Investigation Agency's Hyderabad branch has issued notices to more than ten individuals in Telangana in connection with FIR No. RC-04/2025. Those served include activists, former student leaders, civil rights advocates, poets, writers, retired schoolteachers, and local leaders associated with the Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Indian National Congress.

The ultimate all-time ODI XI: A personal selection of icons across eras

By Harsh Thakor* This is my all-time best XI chosen for ODI (One Day International) cricket: 1. Adam Gilchrist (W) – The absolute master blaster who could create the impact of exploding gunpowder with his electrifying strokeplay. No batsman was more intimidating in his era. Often his knocks decided the fate of games as though the result were premeditated. He escalated batting strike rates to surreal realms.

Aligning too closely with U.S., allies, India’s silence on IRIS Dena raises troubling questions

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The reported sinking of the Iranian ship IRIS Dena in the Indian Ocean near Sri Lanka raises troubling questions about international norms and the credibility of the so-called rule-based order. If indeed the vessel was attacked by the American Navy while returning from a joint exercise in Visakhapatnam, it would represent a serious breach of trust and a violation of the principles that govern such cooperative engagements. Warships participating in these exercises are generally not armed for combat; they are meant to symbolize solidarity and friendship. The incident, therefore, is not only shocking but also deeply ironic.

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.

Asbestos contamination in children’s products highlights global oversight gaps

By A Representative A commentary published by the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS) has drawn attention to the challenges governments face in responding effectively to global public-health risks. In an article written by Laurie Kazan-Allen and published on March 5, 2026, the author examines how the discovery of asbestos contamination in children’s play products has raised questions about regulatory oversight and international product safety. The article opens by reflecting on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, noting that governments in several countries were slow to respond to early warning signs of the crisis. Referring to the experience of the United Kingdom, the author writes that delays in implementing protective measures contributed to “232,112 recorded deaths and over a million people suffering from long Covid.” The commentary uses this example to illustrate what it describes as the dangers of underestimating emerging threats. Attention then turns...

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

Nalanda mahavihara By Rajiv Shah 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".

The kitchen as prison: A feminist elegy for domestic slavery

By Garima Srivastava* Kumar Ambuj stands as one of the most incisive voices in contemporary Hindi poetry. His work, stripped of ornamentation, speaks directly to the lived realities of India’s marginalized—women, the rural poor, and those crushed under invisible forms of violence. His celebrated poem “Women Who Cook” (Khānā Banātī Striyāṃ) is not merely about food preparation; it is a searing indictment of patriarchal domestic structures that reduce women’s existence to endless, unpaid labour.

Search This Blog