Narmada dam oustees have been half-heartedly compensated. Can Sardar Sarovar Project be called 'successful'?

NBA leader Medha Patkar (right)

Counterview Desk

Statement by Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA):

In all, in Madhya Pradesh 22,822 hectares of land has been submerged, out of which 7,883 hectares is prime fertile agricultural land. This has displace 32,679 families (which is of a magnitude unprecedented in human history). Of these 15,946 families displaced have been half-heartedly compensated. Can, even after all this, the Sardar Sarovar Project, be called 'successful'?
In March 2017 the Narmada Control Authority in its annual report declared completion of Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) work. Then how come between June 2017 and August 2017, the state of Madhya Pradesh declared in Rs 900 crore package for compensating the displaced?
According to the 8 February 2017 order of the Supreme Court, families who were refused 5 acres of land were ordered Rs 60 lakh in compensation, and families duped in the rehabilitation scam (ranging in crores) were to be paid Rs. 15 lakh compensation and relief. While 734 families received the Rs 60 lakh package, hundreds of families still remain.
According to Madhya Pradesh government records only 993 families out of 1,358 have been compensated till now. Hundreds of names in the eligibility list of Rs 5.80 lakh package are fake. According to orders of the Supreme Court, as also the order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court dated 28 November 2017 given to the Grievance Redressal Authority, all facilities were to be provided in the rehabilitation sites, but not even 1% of that is fulfilled.
By 31 April 2018 all rehabilitation sites and displaced people are be provided with adequate water and drinking water but today, when this destructive project has caused a drought, where will that water come from? Promises of water harvesting, earthquake monitoring and rehabilitation of temples and religious sites still remain incomplete. And still the project was shown to be complete with 100% rehabilitation in court and was forcibly inaugurated on the birthday of Narendra Modi.
Today, there are plans to interlink Narmada with Kshipra, Gambhir, Kali, Sindhu, Mahi and Parvati rivers. There are declarations that 70 cities and 300 villages in Malwa will be given water from Narmada. Industries all across have been relentlessly pumping water from Narmada for industrial output.
Even after inauguration, in Gujarat only 6 lakh hectares out of the promised 18 lakh hectares are officially supposed to be receiving irrigation waters from the Sardar Sarovar Project. Truth is, not even 3 lakh hectares are getting that benefit. With the electricity plant shut, Madhya Pradesh can't even receive 50% of the electricity it was allocated.

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