Abandon coal-based power plants, dams on Narmada river: MP 34 civil society bodies

Counterview Desk
As many as 34 civil society organizations of Madhya Pradesh, forming Jan Sangharsh Samanvay Samiti, have, through a statement, put forward a list of demands before candidates fighting the Lok Sabha elections, ranging from abandoning new plans to have coal-based power plants to suspending fresh dams on the Narmada river in view of sharp deceleration in the flow of water.

Text of statement:

In the context of the upcoming general election, a two days consultation was organized by Mahegi Bijali Abhiyan – Madhya Pradesh and National Alliance of People’s Movement – Madhya Pradesh on “Energy and Infrastructure Development – a Democratic Process” in Jabalpur.
More than 55 people from 30 people’s organisations and grassroots groups from across Madhya Pradesh which are resisting mega energy and infrastructure construction projects in their respective areas participated in the consultation.
The two-day consultation process ended with the community leaders from these groups came out with specific demands related to energy and water sector development projects and their financing mechanisms.
A state-level coordination committee was formed which has been formally named as – Madhya Pradesh Jan-Sangharsh Samanvay Samiti, it is an umbrella forum which looks to represent grassroots groups and people’s organisations questioning, critiquing and resisting mega infrastructure projects in energy and water sector in Madhya Pradesh.
The state level co-ordination committee resolved and prepared demands of these groups which will be put forth to all the people’s representatives as part of the democratic process. The groups also agreed to present these demands and get it passed through Gram Sabhas resolutions in the state on April 14, 2019 when the next gram sabha would convene. Thereafter, all the 30 groups will ask all the people’s representatives during the general elections to accept and formally agree to them, so as to ensure support and encouragement of the local community members.
The committee will also meet the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and the concerned ministers to discuss the resolution in the near future. The committee will also hold briefings and meetings in Bhopal and other regions of the state in this regard.
Resolution and demands presented to the people’s representatives:

In Madhya Pradesh the installed capacity of electricity is double than demand, therefore, now there is no need to approve new coal-based power plant, hydropower plant, and nuclear projects.
Such projects where land has been acquired for power projects, but so far the work on the projects has not been started, the acquired land should be returned to original landowners/ tenants.
Power projects where there has been no power purchase agreement, Coal Linkages, water linkage and financial closure, such projects should be cancelled immediately.
Water conservation, protection and rehabilitation of water resources should be promoted across the state with urgency and should be given priority in the areas where water problems are arising due to pollution, encroachment, diversion, etc of water supply to power/ industrial projects. The basic right to water should be ensured in the state specifically water for drinking and irrigation should be ensured for all.
The privatisation of water services for drinking water and irrigation should be stopped in the name of reforms and privatised water services to be returned to public agencies.
Considering the decreasing water flows in the Narmada river, all the big construction projects should be stopped immediately in the Narmada basin. Catchment areas of Narmada and its tributaries should be protected from pollution and sand mining, efforts to be encouraged to maintain annual water flows in these rivers.
All the existing projects which are approved/ cleared by the government under the environmental conditions should ensure compliance of the conditions in the area.
Ensure the rehabilitation of all families displaced from various mega construction projects and immediately stopping any proposed displacement.
To cancel immediately all the false cases imposed on people who are resisting against these mega projects.
The Madhya Pradesh government land in villages should be declared as Gram Sabhaproperty under the Madhya Pradesh Panchayati Raj and Gram Swaraj acts 1993 and 2001.
The new land acquisition act has provision to provide 4 times the compensation from the current rate, however, Madhya Pradesh government is providing only 2 times compensation which is against the new act. According to the act four times, compensation should be ensured.
The Madhya Pradesh government is selling electricity to other states at INR 2.60 per unit. Therefore, electricity at the same rate should also be available to the people of Madhya Pradesh.
All the loans from power projects or companies which are declared under stressed assets or have become non-performing assets, the full amount of it should be recovered without any haircut or write off.

---

Click HERE for the list of civil society participants

Comments

Insider plot to kill Deendayal Upadhyay? What RSS pracharak Balraj Madhok said

By Shamsul Islam* Balraj Madhok's died on May 2, 2016 ending an era of old guards of Hindutva politics. A senior RSS pracharak till his death was paid handsome tributes by the RSS leaders including PM Modi, himself a senior pracharak, for being a "stalwart leader of Jan Sangh. Balraj Madhok ji's ideological commitment was strong and clarity of thought immense. He was selflessly devoted to the nation and society. I had the good fortune of interacting with Balraj Madhok ji on many occasions". The RSS also issued a formal condolence message signed by the Supremo Mohan Bhagwat on behalf of all swayamsevaks, referring to his contribution of commitment to nation and society. He was a leading RSS pracharak on whom his organization relied for initiating prominent Hindutva projects. But today nobody in the RSS-BJP top hierarchy remembers/talks about Madhok as he was an insider chronicler of the immense degeneration which was spreading as an epidemic in the high echelons of th

Astonishing? Violating its own policy, Barclays 'refinanced' Adani Group's $8 billion bonds

By Rajiv Shah A new report released by two global NGOs, BankTrack and the Toxic Bonds Network, has claimed to have come up with “a disquieting truth”: that Barclays, a financial heavyweight with a “controversial” track record, is deeply entrenched in a “disturbing” alliance with “the Indian conglomerate and coal miner Adani Group.”

Junk food push causing severe public health crisis of obesity, diabetes in India: Report

By Rajiv Shah A new report , “The Junk Push: Rising Consumption of Ultra-processed foods in India- Policy, Politics and Reality”, public health experts, consumers groups, lawyers, youth and patient groups, has called upon the Government of India to check the soaring consumption of High Fat Sugar or Salt (HFSS) foods or ultra-processed foods (UPF), popularly called junk food.

Modi govt intimidating US citizens critical of abuses in India: NY Christian group to Biden

Counterview Desk the New York Council of Churches for its release of an open letter calling on the Biden administration to “speak out forcefully” against rising Hindu extremist violence targeting Christians and other minorities in India. In the letter addressed to President Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and other major elected officials, the NY Council of Churches expressed "grave concern regarding escalating anti-Christian violence" throughout India, particularly in Manipur, where predominantly Christian Kuki-Zo tribals have faced hundreds of violent attacks on their villages, churches, and homes at the hands of predominantly Hindu Meitei mobs.

Link India's 'deteriorating' religious conditions with trade relations: US policymakers told

By Our Representative Commissioners on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) raised concerns about the “sophisticated, systematic persecution” of religious minorities by the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a hearing on India in Washington DC.

Green revolution "not sustainable", Bt cotton a failure in India: MS Swaminathan

MS Swaminathan Counterview Desk In a recent paper in the journal “Current Science”, distinguished scientist PC Kesaven and his colleague MS Swaminathan, widely regarded as the father of the Green Revolution, have argued that Bt insecticidal cotton, widely regarded as the continuation of the Green Revolution, has been a failure in India and has not provided livelihood security for mainly resource-poor, small and marginal farmers. Sharply taking on Green Revolution, the authors say, it has not been sustainable largely because of adverse environmental and social impacts, insisting on the need to move away from the simplistic output-yield paradigm that dominates much thinking. Seeking to address the concerns about local food security and sovereignty as well as on-farm and off-farm social and ecological issues associated with the Green Revolution, they argue in favour of what they call sustainable ‘Evergreen Revolution’, based on a ‘systems approach’ and ‘ecoagriculture’. Pointing ou

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".

Jharkhand: Attempt to create red scare for 'brutal crackdown', increase loot of resources

Counterview Desk The civil rights group Forum Against Corporatization and Militarization in a statement on plans to crackdown on “64 democratic progressive organisations” in Jharkhand under the pretext of the need to investigate their Maoist link, has alleged that this an attempt to suppress dissent against corporate loot and create an authoritarian state.

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.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah* The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual.

Search This Blog