NS July 2005 - Nadir2 Narmada Samachar July 2005 Published by: Narmada Bachao Andolan Narmada Bachao...

July 2005

The Struggle… The Hope…Dear all,

It is after a year that we are coming back to you, with Narmada Samachar. The delay wasdue to the time and financial constraint faced as we were engaged in certain fruitfulactions but much of struggle. News must have reached many of you through e-mail, mediaor meetings. Yet the vivid description to critical analysis, we thought, must go and find youin your own battlefields, to strengthen our ties and commitment to the common cause whichis beyond Narmada - a truly just development, not only of our natural resources but humancommunities.

Sardar Sarovar is at a stand still again. It needs to be. It was and is illegal and unjust to pushthe dam height up leading to massive submergence without rehabilitation andenvironmental protection measures. Especially considering the enormous problems with theeconomics and politics of water distribution of the dam as well, this scale of human andnatural destruction is unacceptable. Big dams in general and SSP or NSP in particular, arebeing questioned on these and more grounds, not quite monitored by the PlanningCommission or the concerned Ministries either. Yet, the prolonged struggle has brought thelegal violations by the governments to the fore, vindicating the NBA’s position oninadequate rehabilitation.

While there is some respite, the politics of Narendra Modi government, fooling Gujarat withthe lure of Narmada dam waters as the only solution and pressuring the inter-state agenciesto permit further construction is not at rest. We have to expose this in a renewed context.

The floods in Gujarat are a renewed hope for those in the Sardar Sarovar’s hinterlandsbecause floods are an indicator for Gujarat, to turn to the right path to harness waters underits own feet. But this important fact and its relevance is being deliberately suppressed anddistorted through systematic propaganda through media. You too have to join us incountering the false propaganda that flood waters couldn’t be harnessed since SardarSarovar is only 110 meters high!

While we continue to prevent devastation in our river valley, you are aware of the arroganceand violence of those in power to commodify our waters, to captures our rivers and carry onwith the dams – large and gigantic. Many countries including Nepal, Pakistan, Germany,Brazil and others are using the World Commission on Dams guidelines but the Indiangovernment has shelved it! Our efforts, as two of the twelve commissioners from India and agroup of our activist-colleagues across the world, haven’t been of much use for our owncountry! But the hope lies in increasing awareness among the dam-affected as well as thedrought and flood- affected, whether in Bihar or the North-east, in Narmada or inGodavari which is leading to serious questioning of the paradigm of water management.

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Narmada Samachar July 20052

Published by: Narmada Bachao Andolan

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Contents

Supreme Court Vindicates NBA Position................ 3The Endless Saga of ‘Rehabilitation’...................... 5IPT Conducts Public Hearing................................ 7“Nav Nirman” (Reconstruction) ............................ 9NBA in Solidarity................................................. 11The Vignettes..................................................... 13Events at a Glance.............................................. 22

I Build a Dam...

The dawn breaks overthe dam I build.There is no flour

in the grinding stone.

I collect yesterday’s husk,for today’s meal.

The sun risesand my spirit sinks.

I hide my baby under a basket;my tears beneath a grin;

I go to build dam.

The dam.It feeds the sugarcane crop

lush and juicy;but I walk miles of forest

for fire-wood.I water my plants with drops of sweat;

dry leaves fill my parched yard.

~ Daya Pawar

3Narmada Samachar July 2005

Supreme Court Vindicates NBAPositionRecent Supreme Court JudgementVindicates the People’s Cause:Inadequate Rehabilitation Halts theDam

On March 15, 2005, the SupremeCourt (SC) of India gave itsjudgement in the case filed by theSardar Sarovar dam-affected adivasivillagers of Picchodi and Jalsindhi(both in Madhya Pradesh), versus theGovernment of Madhya Pradesh andother authorities. In a vindication forProject Affected Families (PAFs) whohave been struggling for the last twodecades, the Court took a very clearposition on the interpretation of theNarmada Water Disputes TribunalAward (NWDTA) of 1979 andprevious Supreme Court Judgements,strongly upholding the rights of thePAFs to land-based rehabilitation andpointing out the grave inadequaciesof current rehabilitation efforts. It isimportant to understand that thejudgment conveys a serious messageabout the ground reality regardingrehabilitation of families affectedby the Sardar Sarovar Dam vis-à-vis the false paperwork submittedby the government in order toillegally raise the dam height. Thisverdict has far-reaching implicationsand, if enforced appropriately, is amajor victory for dam-displacedpopulations. Below are the majoraspects of the judgment:

Major Sons: The judgment bringsout clearly that each and every majorson (defined as those who are overthe age of 18 at a certain point oftime) should be considered as aseparate family and, as per theTribunal’s Award, must be allottedtwo hectares (ha) of cultivable,irrigable land. Until now, Gujarat was

allotting 2 ha to major sons,Maharashtra was allotting only 1 ha,while Madhya Pradesh (M.P) refusedto recognise this entitlement of majorsons (M.P has even refused land forthe titled holders!). Now, all majorsons in all states will have to beallotted 2 ha of land.

In fact, the state of M.P has not evenrecorded all the major sons in the 193affected villages of M.P. Thus,thousands of major sons are still leftoff the lists and there are many ineach village. For example, there are300 in village Ekkalbara, 120 inBhavaria (both district Dhar) and soon. The government will have toinclude their names on the list, andthen will have to locate land for allthe eligible families. Thousands ofsuch families have already fallen intothe affected zone at the height of110m and even below; many morethousands will be affected at 121metres dam height. If the SC decisionis to be honoured and enforced, all ofthem will need to be identified andrehabilitated before the dam advancesany further. Thus, if enforced, theSupreme Court’s decision is a majorvictory for thousands of major sonswho have thus far been denied theirlawful land-based rehabilitation.

Temporary or PermanentSubmergence: The judgment alsoclearly reinforces what is clear fromthe definition of ‘oustee’ in theNWDTA: that there can be nodistinction between the ‘temporarily’or ‘permanently’ affected families atintermediate stages of the damheight.

Beginning in 2002, when therehabilitation seemed insurmountable

to M.P, the govt. began drasticallyreducing families from the official lists,based on a bogus and illegaldistinction between ‘temporarily’ or‘permanently’ affected families. M.Pargued that those affected temporarilyat a certain dam height (meaning thosefamilies whose agricultural lands willbe submerged for some period of timefollowing which the water will recede,but after destroying the standingcrops) do not need to be rehabilitatedbefore the dam height is increased.This was in clear violation of theAward’s definition of “oustee.”However neither the M.P govt, theNarmada Control Authority (NCA)nor even the Ministry of SocialJustice and Empowerment (MSJ&E)stopped this procedure even after itwas brought to their notice. HenceNBA approached the Court on thisissue.

At the 110 mts dam height, M.P hadreduced the number of PAFs from12681 to 8406 using this artificialdivision, which is in fact a shift inpolicy also. With this judgement M.Pwill now have to resettle theoriginal figure of 12681 familiesplus all the major sons that weren’tcounted. And it will subsequentlyhave to revise its estimates of PAFsfor all future dam heights.

No Submergence WithoutRehabilitation: The Court alsostrongly reiterated what is clearlyspelled out in the NWDTA andprevious verdicts: that nosubmergence, and hence no raising ofdam height, can occur until everyaffected family is rehabilitated, thecut off being one year before actualsubmergence. The Tribunal’sstipulation, one may note is very clearon the linkage between submergence/dam construction and rehabilitation.Clause XI, sub-clause IV (6) (ii)clearly states, “In no event shall anyareas in Madhya Pradesh andMaharashtra be submerged under theSardar Sarovar unless…arrangements


are made for the rehabilitation ofoustees.” The judgment has definedthe concept of ‘pari passu’ andcategorically rejected any undue hasteor violation of the above clause thussettling the dispute once and for all.In sum, submergence beforerehabilitation is illegal!

It is clear from the very Petitioners inwhose case the Court has givendirectives that there are PAF’s below110 mts - the number in all threestates is not less than 10,000 PAF’s,of which M.P. has about 8000+ PAFs,while Maharashtra is yet torehabilitate at least 1500 PAFs, withat least half of them yet to berecognised. In Gujarat too, there aredeclared PAFs - but fewer - who areyet to be allotted land and hundredsof others who were allotteduncultivable lands that need to bechanged. All those below 110 mtswere to be rehabilitated one yearbefore reaching that height but thiswas not done. For any future heightincrease, all those who haven’t yetbeen rehabilitated at lower heightsplus all those to be affected at thenew height must be rehabilitatedBEFORE proceeding.

Land Based Rehabilitation: Theland-based rehabilitation provision ofNWDTA has been emphasisedwithout a doubt. The Court hasunderlined the Tribunal’s provisionof offering only cultivable andirrigable land, indicating thatanything else is not acceptable andcan be rejected by oustees. It is alsomade clear that the alternative landfor agriculture should be allotted toa PAF, at least one year beforesubmergence while fullresettlement is to be completed atleast six months before.

In Madhya Pradesh, No PAF has beenoffered or allotted cultivable land(with the exception of a few of thepetitioners in this very case, and thattoo because of the case). The

judgment proves this to be a grossviolation that requires a major shiftin the state’s rehabilitation policiesand planning, without which theproject cannot proceed. It is anindirect yet indisputableimplication of the judgment thatMP’s manipulated policy ofoffering people cash in lieu of landor house plots is unacceptable. TheMinister for Water Resources MrPriyaranjan Dasmunshi also gave adirection to this effect on March 18th,three days after the judgment. Hegave directions to suspend allprocedures related to allotment ofcash compensation until furtherdirections. This is an important moveas the government was coercingmany families, who rightfully deserveland-based rehabilitation, intoaccepting cash compensation. Wehope this issue will not need aseparate legal action. This againleads to the requirement thatthousands of hectares of productiveland be identified by GoMP and bemade available to oustees. This land,it should be noted, must not be theuncultivable govt wasteland orgrazing land, which is currently inthe govt’s “land bank”. It should beimplied by the Court’s decision thatthose who have already been cheatedby the government and paid only apittance in cash instead of alternativeland should be offered the option ofland instead.

In Maharashtra too, identification ofadequate land for many declared andundeclared PAF’s at 110 mts andhigher heights is yet to be done.

In Gujarat, as against the claim ofcomplete rehabilitation, theuncultivable land already allottedneeds to be exchanged for good land.

Resettling As Village Units: Thejudgment also upholds the NWDTAprinciple that villages should beresettled as village units as far aspossible. This means not breaking up

villages over numerous sites as hasoften happened to many displacedvillages, especially in Gujarat. Onthe PAFs right to choose land, thejudgement upholds the oustees’ rightto reject uncultivable land, butrestricts the oustees’ choice to theland offered by the government if it isproductive.

False Records And Manipulation:The judgment reads with details andreferences to the false records andmanipulation of facts by thegovernments, especially GoMP sincethe case pertains to that state. It isknown and already exposed by theNBA that the same is true about thereports of each state and the centralauthority also.

The obvious conclusion emerging outof detailed analysis of thegovernment’s shifting claims is thatthe monitoring agencies includingthe R&R Sub-group, the NCA andthe GRA have NOT correctlyinterpreted the NWDTA and priorCourt judgements, nor have theycorrectly monitored the R&R process.At last the voices of the PAFs havebeen heard.

Hence, the judgment demands thatthe governments correct andupdate their records and lists, andthen identify cultivable land forrehabilitation. In fact, aRehabilitation Master Plan is muchneeded and though mandated, hasnot been made till date. There is nodoubt that the dam cannot beraised beyond 110 mts at this pointof time.

All this means that a massiverehabilitation effort on the part of thestate governments is required if thedam is to legally move ahead. Giventhe enormity of this task, and theother questionable aspects of theproject, it is not too late to haltfurther construction and focus on

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The Endless Saga of‘Rehabilitation’The Devastating Floods And Waterlogging In Gujarat

Towards the end of June 2005,normal life was in Doldrums in mostof South Gujarat due tounprecedented floods. Thousands offamilies had to be evacuated to savelife even as properties and belongingsworth crores of rupees had been lost.While we are in solidarity with theaffected people of Gujarat, we doraise questions to the rulers andbuilders. Why is it that no one couldpredict or prevent such loss andsuffering due to floods that occurred?Even though the rate of rainfall washigher that normal this year, therewas huge crop loss last year also.While government may blame it onnature’s fury and the incompletion ofthe SSP, there is more to it thanmeets the eye.

While the people of Gujarat wereflooded and submerged, the rulerswere using this opportunity to ensurethe creation of public opinion(through media) supportive of thedestructive SSP. They were harpingon how water got wasted in theNarmada because of the incompletedam!

For any ordinary observer, it isobvious that the floods happened notmuch in Narmada district but moreso in Vadodara, Surat, Kheda andother districts. Though the citydwellers were able to brieflyexperience the afflictions that theadivasis in the Narmada Valley aregoing through (from 1994 onwards),this time it is not the Narmada Riverbut other rivers and their catchmentsthat were flooded more. Even now,the water level at Sardar Sarovar dam

site has not crossed 115m while it wasover flowing upto 118m last year. Whyis it that there is no talk on thewastage of immeasurable amounts ofwater that has got lost (outsideNarmada) during this year’s floods?It is an open truth that due to theoverarching concentration on onesingle project (SSP), the govt. lostfocus on harnessing the numerouswaters that are available in Gujaratduring monsoon, through varioussustainable, low cost, moreemployment creating methods andtechnologies. It is to be understoodclearly that media campaignstargeting SSP are deceptive andwedges all attempts at creatingalternative, sustainable, cost-effective and people-friendlysolutions to Gujarat’s legitimatewater requirements.

Devastation by water is of manykinds, the most dreadful beingTsunami and high floods. But whathappened in Gujarat is not just floodsi.e. an over flowing due to the rise inriver water levels. The disaster wasacute not only because of heavyrainfall but also due to blockscreated in natural drains. Even nowrural areas are facing severe waterlogging and huge crop loss(especially many of the R&R sites ofthe SSP affected adivasis) whereas inthe cities waters have receded, muchto the relief of the people. In the ruralareas, some of the affected regionshave been under canal irrigation (ofvarious projects) for many years andhence have become prone to waterlogging.

The most important thing to note inSouth Gujarat is the kind ofstructures that have turned up in the

last few years, blocking natural drainswithout adequate alternatives. Theyare the snake-like network of theNarmada canals, the express high way,and many more symbols of the so-called development. If we probedeeper we see a whole lot of disturbedrivers in Gujarat were numerousdams are built, the Sardar Sarovarleading the list. Whether there isheavy or light rainfalls, floods andwater logging have become acommon feature during the monsoonswherever planners have unwiselyintervened in nature’s course,whether it is Bihar or Kerala,Uttaranchal or Gujarat.

The dailies of Gujarat quite obviouslyfocused on the wastage of water dueto the overflow of the Sardar Sarovaras if a completed dam would haveprevented the floods. They quitenotoriously kept silent on thepossibilities of utilizing thetremendous quantities of water thatpoured from the sky. If the policies onwater harnessing are going to remainthe same, we are in for more trouble.

A study conducted by NBA on thesituation of canal construction in theR&R sites in Gujarat clearlypredicted that there will be disastrouswater-logging and crop loss due tothe retention of floods waters as thecanal network has blocked the naturaldrains in most places. Last year, theMain canal breached in three places.This year there is already disaster andthe monsoon has just begun!

It is high time that we learn toharness water locally and plandevelopment in tune with thegeography and problems of specificregions. The campaign for a changein both state and national policieson water management, floodcontrol, disaster management andrelief and rehabilitation operationshas to be intensified before we getinto a point of no return.


Disaster Yet Again Hits SSPResettlement Sites in Gujarat

As South Gujarat reels under floodsand water-logging, nearly 6000 SSPaffected adivasi families who areresettled in Kheda, Vadodara,Narmada, Baruch and Surat districts(out of a total of more than 10,000families settled in over 7 districts) arefacing a severe livelihood crisis withmost of their monsoon cropsdestroyed. Last year, NBA conducteda sample survey of 10 R&R sites withabout 200 families in Vadodaradistrict, who were affected by water-logging and crop loss and found thatjust in terms of the prices of seedsand fertilizers there was a cumulativeloss of nearly 5 lakh rupees. This willplay a major role in the pauperisationof those severely affected as most ofthe money had been borrowed eitherfrom bank or moneylenders. TheGovernment or SSNNL had not givenany relief to the PAFs last year. Theofficials shy away from the problemby saying that flood are a naturaldisaster and that PAFs are not theonly ones who are affected.

This argument is a serious violationof the NWDTA provisions and StateRehabilitation Policies that ensuresan improvement in the livelihoodstandard of the PAFs who are affectedby the SSP. Not only that people arecheated in the process of landallotment, but also the field canal-network intended to help thepopulations has blocked most of theminor natural drains resulting inwater stagnation on the agriculturefields. The canals have breached inseveral places causing severe damageto crops and houses.

While the free water received duringmonsoon goes waste, the people aresupposed to buy water from thecanals or from local landlords for thewinter cultivation. Is it not clear fromthis that the government is moreinterested in profit-making through

water marketing than ensuring theavailability of sufficient, sustainableand affordable resources to thecitizens? While that may happen onlythrough local initiatives involvingpeople, we believe that the benefitsfrom mega projects are not only un-sustainable but also destructive.

Faulty Electricity Cables Cause Firein Resettlement Site – Homes andProperty Worth Lakhs of RupeesDestroyed

On April 3, 05 two houses were fullycharred to the ground, and anothertwo were partially burned in a firecaused by low-hanging electricitycables at Thuvavi Rehabilitation site,Dabhoi taluka, Vadodara district,Gujarat. For the thirty-one people infour families who have lost theirpossessions in the fire, this will bethe second time they will have torebuild their lives. After the loss ofhis family’s last remaining resources,one of the PAFs said, “We feel likedying”.

PAP in Gujarat Jailed forDemanding Fast Redressal of HisGrievance

Kantibhai Rumal of SavliResettlement site, (originally fromvillage Mokhadi in Gujarat) wasarrested for threatening to commitsuicide in the Sardar Sarovar dam.These are gestures of resistance byoppressed individuals who aredriven by absolute despair. Noorganization suggests, encouragesor condones the practice andpolitics of suicide, but everyorganization, is obliged to considerwho is responsible for producingconditions that force people toextreme measures. This incident isthe 4th of its kind in the last twoyears, including the suicide attemptby 15 youths in December 2003. Ineach of these incidents thegovernment has tried to scare andsuppress the real issues and

humiliate and criminalize the affectedpersons.

Current Resettlement process inMaharashtra

The Bhoomi Haq (Land Rights)Satyagraha at Somaval in Talodataluka of Maharashtra went on formore than a month. (May 7th to June10th, 2004). The struggle has forcedthe administration to purchaseprivate lands in Vadchhil and VadiJavda villages, as desired by theadivasi PAFs of Maharashtra. InVadchhil some 250 families havereceived land and in Javda vasahat,more than 500 acres of land has beenpurchased and have been madeavailable to around 200 families.

All this has been possible because ofthe ongoing struggles of the people.On one hand are the victories but onthe other hand are the battles yet tobe won. Vadchhil vasahat is facingserious shortage of water for drinkingand irrigation. A few months back,their water pumps have been stolen.Electricity Meters have not beenmade available and other amenitieslike drainage, sanitation facilities,cremation grounds are yet to beconstructed. Even after shifting toVasahat, people have not been issuedLand Rights in their names. In fewcases, even after being declared as aPAP (Project Affected Person), peoplehave not received land or otherfacilities.

The construction of Javda Vadi wasdecided in April 2003 butgovernment had been delaying itwithout any reason. The people hadto face the hardships of floods lastyear and this year also because of thedelay. In such a situation, peoplewere temporarily shifted to transitcamps where even water facilitieswere not available. People facingsuch hardships have been forced toconstruct their houses there.

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Desperate Attempts toRaise the Dam Height

Even though it is clear that the damheight cannot legally be raised at thisstage, the Sardar Sarovar NarmadaNigam Ltd (SSNNL), the Governmentof Gujarat and Chief Minister Modi areall desperately trying to get a heightraise sanctioned. Thus, it is evidentthat they have little regard for the lawand are intent on raising the damheight even without the just and legalrehabilitation of all affected families. Infact, some unidentified officials havebeen making statements in the pressthat can clearly be considered as‘Contempt of Court.’ For example, onMarch 25, an Indian Express storyquoted an official as having said, ‘’our government could have avoidedthis predicament had it tried to havean early meeting with the NCA andobtain its nod to raise the dam heightbefore the Narmada Bachao Andolanmoved an application in the apexcourt.’’

The attitude is clearly that the dammust go ahead by hook or by crook,even if it means circumventing the lawand neglecting rehabilitation andenvironmental regulations and‘throwing good money after the bad’.

The NCA WebsiteDrama: Right toMisinformation?

In November 2004, a press releasefrom the Prime Minister’s Office statedthat all information regardingrehabilitation should be placed ongovernment websites, since theNarmada Bachao Andolan has beenconstantly disputing the officialfigures of rehabilitated families. Whatfollowed was a charade that continuesuntil today, as incorrect and falseinformation has remained on

government websites in spite of theSupreme Court verdict making itevident that rehabilitation has notbeen completed, and even though ithas been brought to the notice of theconcerned authorities.

The information first appeared on thewebsite of the Narmada ControlAuthority (NCA), where it wasincorrectly shown that the balance offamilies remaining to be rehabilitatedunder dam height 100 meters and110.64 meters (current height) was‘zero’. As noted by the recentSupreme Court judgment amongothers, this is clearly untrue and false.In Madhya Pradesh alone, thousandsof families are living in villages ofJhabua, Dhar and Badwani districtswho are affected at 110.64 meters andwhose rehabilitation is still pending.An estimate of the number is over10,000 families, and yet when youaccess the information on NCA’swebsite, even three months after theverdict, it shows you the number ofbalance families as “zero”.

As a result of our campaign againstthis ‘website drama’, the NCA firstremoved the data from their websitealtogether, instead putting up old datashowing the rehabilitation status at95m of dam. Meanwhile, the disputeddata appeared on the website of theMinistry of Social Justice andEmpowerment (MSJ&E)! Then it alsoreappeared on the NCA website andcontinues to be there till today. It hasrepeatedly been brought to the noticeof all the concerned authorities thatthis information is completely false,but to no avail. It continues to be onthe website, and used as ajustification to push the dam forward.In the MSJ&E website, due to our

campaign, the column showing ‘0’balance has been removed from thestatus chart of rehabilitation at110.64m, but the false figures of 8860in M.P instead of the 12681 remain.The figure of 8860 is false as it isachieved through a deliberate under-counting of PAFs using temporary orpermanent and other such artificialfactors, which shows an attempt atdiluting the state’s rehabilitationpolicy. In May 2003 (one year afterthe first introduction of the temporaryor permanent distinction at 95 and100m), the 110m PAF list drops“tentatively” by over 7,000 families(from 12,681 to 5,607) and nowincreased to 8860 on the website.More like taking a bail againstfurther embarrassment the followingfootnote is given in the website homepage:

“Disclaimer: Data and informationregarding resettlement of ProjectAffected Families (PAFs) concerningSardar Sarovar Project (SSP) areprovided for informational purposesonly, and are not intended for anyother purpose. Neither Governmentof India/State Governments nor anyof the data or content providers shallbe liable for any errors or delays inthe content, or for any actions takenin reliance thereon. By accessingthis site, a user agrees not toredistribute the information foundtherein. Government of India/StateGovernments shall not be liable forany damages or costs of any typearising out of or in any wayconnected with use of theinformation or any loss to anyperson caused by any shortcoming,defect or inaccuracy in theinformation available on website.See http://socialjustice.nic.in/NARMADA/home.htm Is this theRight to Information or Right toMisinformation?


IPT Conducts Public HearingIn September 2004, a team of panelistsconsisting of Mr. Harsh Mander, Dr.B.D. Sharma and Ms. Chitra Palekar,constituted by the Delhi-based IndianPeoples’ Tribunal, visited communitiesaffected by the Sardar Sarovar Project(SSP), and attended three large publichearings.

On September 6th and 7th, they heldpublic hearings in Khaparkhedavillage, tehsil Kukshi, district Dhar,Madhya Pradesh, Nimgavan village,tehsil Akrani, Nandurbar district,Maharashtra and Parvetta-2rehabilitation site in Sankheda tehsilof Vadodara district, Gujarat.

Kishorbhai from Kharya Badal, aforest village and the first affectedvillage of Badwani district, explainedhow his fields with standing cropswere destroyed this year and the M.P.government has never offered anycompensation. In fact, even the landacquisition process in the seven forestvillages of Badwani district has notbeen done properly. People weredistraught as they narrated thedevastation of their fields, crops andhomes, many of which have beenaffected every year since 1994. Theytalked of faulty level surveys, lack ofproper ‘tapu’ surveys, inadequate orlack of land-based rehabilitation fordeclared people who chose to besettled in their own states and thealarming number of undeclaredpeople still left in the villages.

Most people from resettlement sitescomplained that the land allotted tothem was uncultivable orunproductive, affected by a host ofproblems such as water logging, daabgrass (a dangerous weed), was lessproductive etc. Appropriate irrigationstill remains a dream for most PAFs.Many also brought up the issues of

lack of proper civic facilities likedrinking water, electricity, ‘pucca’roads to the sites, approach roads tofields, cremation grounds andgrazing land.

The most serious concern wasbrought by Raijikaka,Bhaghawanbhai and others of Gadherand Vadgam villages who havereturned to their original village dueto lack of sufficient livelihood. Theysaid that forest officials havethreatened to burn down their housesif they don’t return to the R&R sites.The government argues that since thepeople have already accepted thelands offered to them, they have noright to return to their originalvillages. According to the policies,the people can have access to theirlands previously owned till they getsubmerged. This is being denied evenas the forest officials encouragepeople from other villages to stay andcultivate and take bribe from them.

Many PAFs in Gujarat insist that thegovernment has tricked them in landselection. They were shown the landsduring Feb-March when the wintercultivation was about to be harvested.The hill tribes of the valley easily fellinto the trap after seeing the standingcrops of original owners, as they hadno idea about agricultural issues inthe plains in varying seasons. Withcrop after crop failing due to waterlogging or lack of irrigation anddesperate to earn a decent anddignified livelihood, they sought tocultivate the areas in their originalvillages that have not yet come undersubmergence. The government oughtto provide income security to PAFsrather than kicking them out of theiroriginal lands.

The IPT has brought out acomprehensive report of the latestsituation of rehabilitation in SSP andthe report was released on 8 February2005 in New Delhi. The reportcriticizes the governments for non-compliance with the NWDTA andappeals to the Supreme Court toensure justice to the affectedpopulations. Urging the judiciary andthe political leadership to intervenein the matter, Mander said his groupwould send copies of the report toPresident A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh, UPAChairperson Sonia Gandhi as well asto the Supreme Court Chief JusticeR.C. Lahoti. It felt the apex courtshould take the violation of its orderas a contempt of court.“When (Booker Prize winner)Arundhati Roy questioned the courtorder, the court said it was acontempt of court. And when thesame verdict was violated [by thegovernment], why did the court nottake note of it?” asked activist SwamiAgnivesh.

The Chixoy Dam LegacyIssues Study

This report on Guatemala’sChixoy Dam reveals the fullextent of social injusticesresulting from the project, andrecommends legally bindingreparations for those harmed bythe 22–year–old dam. The damwas built by the militarygovernment of the time withWorld Bank and the Inter–American Development Banksupport. More than 4,000people were affected, and 444people were massacred afterresisting forced resettlement.

For the report, please visitwww.irn.org


taking the available waters to thedrought prone regions of Kutch andSaurashtra. This will save the livesand livelihood of more than 25,000families who are yet to be affected bythe dam. The final intended damheight is 138.68 mts (i.e. 28 mts yet tobe built). So far at 110m, nearly 22,000families are affected of which thegovernments are able to resettle onlyabout 12,000 families, which has alsocreated many unresolved problems.Does the government have thenecessary political will and capacity tocomplete all these tasks before thedam is taken ahead?

Latest following The March 15thJudgement…

Since the Court order was to allotcultivable and irrigable lands to thepetitioners i.e. 23 PAFs fromPicchodi and 14 from Jalsindhiwithin three months of the Judgementi.e. 15 June, the M.P government hadstarted the process to buy privatelands for rehabilitation. But on thelast day of the three month period,after failing to buy adequateproductive private lands, thegovernment ex-parte allotteduncultivable grazing lands from theirland bank to 18 PAFs from Picchodivillage (district Badwani) in Dhardistrict about 150 km away!Ironically, the Grievances RedressalAuthority in M.P had earlier rejectedthe very lands during its first orderstating that grazing lands should notbe allotted. This was in the context ofconflict that arose between localvillagers and PAFs when they went tosee the land.

Moreover 23 families were to begiven land and there are many morefamilies under 110m in Picchodiitself. On the basis of non-cultivability of the land, the 18 PAFshave not accepted the offer of NVDAand instead send a notice demanding

an explanation for the ex-parteallotment of un-cultivable land. Theydemand rehabilitation on ‘cultivable,irrigable’ lands where the familiescan gain a secure, sustainablelivelihood and as much as possible,community-based rehabilitation. In theexisting context this is possible only ifthe government buy good privateagricultural lands.

Earlier, ex-parte land allotment hadbeen made for the 14 declaredJalsindhi PAFs in Khajouri, almost150 kms away from the NarmadaRiver on the Rajasthan border. Therethe land is good but local villagerswho are doing sericulture in thoselands may create problems for thenew comers as is happeningelsewhere. Moreover there are un-declared families in Jalsindhi who arefiling a case in the Supreme Court tobe declared. By the time they getdeclared, their parents or cousins willalready be settled in a place wherethere will be no more space for thenewly declared families, thusbreaking the community. TheJalsindhi people want the governmentto buy good private lands closer totheir relatives where it is possible torehabilitate all the families as oneunit. Even after 20 years of struggle,they still await appropriate,community-based rehabilitation.

It is quite evident that the governmentcould not comply with the SC order. Ifthe M.P government has failed in asmall task of providing good lands forJalsindhi and Picchodi, how can thepeople trust them for the massivetask of rehabilitation that is athand. With the new Supreme Courtverdict, the SSP PAFs in M.P arelegally empowered for land basedrehabilitation, not only those whofiled the case but all PAFs who areeligible according to the NWDTA,the number being more than 8000families under 110m and 35,000+ inM.P. with 40,000+ in three states atfull dam height.

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In both these vasahats, NBA runs theJeevanshalas, which are partly shiftedfrom the original villages. In Vadchhil,people from Domkhedi, Nimgavan,Surung have been shifted and inJavda Vasahat people from Bharad,Savariya-Digar, Atti, Keli, Thuvani etchave been shifted. Few people fromSavariya-Digar refused to move out asthey were not allotted house plots inJavda.

Because of the low ground watertable level in rehabilitation site ofVadchhil, NBA has decided to initiatewatershed programmes as also inother vasahats and training camps fororganic farming.

Along with the rehabilitation work,the work of the Task Force formed onthe directions of Daud Committee iscontinuing. Around 127 PAFs whosenames had been left out of thedeclared list have been included.Majority of the 9 villages inAkkalkuva and Bhadal in Akrani areyet to be rehabilitated. Fight for theirrehabilitation is continuing.

The Collector’s Office Task Force hadnot declared many people who areeligible to be declared in the list ofpeople aged above 31. This act ofinjustice was made public andpresented before the Commissionersand in Mantralaya, Mumbai. As aresult, 94 PAFs, whose lands werealready submerged, were declared.

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Large Dams forHydropower in North-East IndiaA DossierPublished by: South AsiaNetwork on Dams, Rivers andPeople & KalpavrikshFor copies: SANDRP, 86-D,AD Block, Shalimar Bagh,Delhi – 110068 Email:[email protected]


“Nav Nirman” (Reconstruction)Narmada Nav Nirman Abhiyan(NNNA)

The NNNA is a recently set-up trustto further our engagement in theconstructive activities of theNarmada Bachao Andolan. Thetrustees of the NNNA include manyPAPs from affected villages likeAshish Mandloi from Chota Barda,Kailash Avasya from Bhilkheda,Mohan Patidar from Bhavaria (allfrom Nimad) and Keshav Vasave fromNimgavan village (Maharashtra).Apart from them Vijaya Chauhan,Suniti S R, Sanjay Joshi and ShyamPatil complete the core team ofTrustees. Pervin Jehangir functionsas the Managing Trustee.

Jeevanshalas – Excellence of aDifferent Quality

At present the NBA is effectivelyrunning 15 schools - Jeevanshalas(‘life schools’) all along the interior,tribal regions of the Narmada Valley.Though the state governments do notyet properly acknowledge theseschools, they have produced manybrilliant students and even a few starathletes. At least 13 of the SSPaffected students of Jeevanshalaschildren have been chosen toparticipate in various sports at thenational level, with some of thesechildren winning the sportsscholarships (of ‘kreedaprobodhini’) where they undergotraining along with their studies inplaces like Pune and Akola. (Seetable below)

As people are shifted from originalvillages to resettlement sites, we aremoving some of the Jeevanshalaswith them. The school at Nimgavanwill be completely shifted toVadchhil rehabilitation village of

Shahada tehsil in Nandurbar districtand the one from Bharad to Javdarehabilitation village. Presentlyworkshops and training programmesare being carried out in the schoolsand almost 1300 children arereceiving the ‘knowledge of life’ atthe Jeevanshalas.

Since 1991, when the battlingcommunities of adivasis decided tohave educational endeavours of theirown, Jeevanshalas have beenworking as the only source ofeducation in the Narmada valley.Starting with 2 schools at Nimgavan& Chimalkhedi, the number ofJeevanshalas has now grown to 15by this year. The local teachers, whoare the teacher activists, have beenteaching in the schools with fullcommitment & dedication towardstheir own community. Ourconsciously adopted methodologies,such as using tribal dialect, mothertongue for teaching first generationlearners from the Adivasicommunities have had a good impacttowards strengthening theeducational base. The progress of theJeevanshalas during the last 14 yearshas become a source of inspirationfor others who have been working inthe field of alternative education andthe schools have become a center ofoverall social unity & power for theAdivasi communities who participatein the running of the schools.

Bhimsing Parshi Vasave, student ofManibeli Jeevanshala participated in400 and 800 m dash in 2003 and wonBronze medel in 400m, Silver in 800mand selected for Olympics trainingcamp [presently staying atBalewadi National level sportscomplex-Pune]. Similarly, Gulabsing

Parashi Vasave of the sameJeevanshala participated in400 and 800 m dash and 10 kmmarathon in 2004. He won RuralAthletics events – Silver medal[presently staying At Prawara NagarSports complex]. Other students whowon laureates in athletics areHanumanta Surajya Vasave (400m,800m, 5000m marathon, Maharashtrastate level winner), Magan GorjiVasave (400m and 800m, wonMalegaon Sports Marathon, NashikMarathon) and Rajesh Singa Padvi(200m, 400m, marathon, won theMalegaon marathon, qualified for theAhmednagar Sports Academy).

Hands on Health

Over the last year, NNNA activistshave been working relentlessly toimprove the health conditions of thevillages in and around the NarmadaValley. The doctors have beensuccessful in overcoming and curingdiseases such as scabies andepidemics such as malaria that havebecome more prevalent because ofthe stagnant waters of the reservoir.

In keeping with their aim of tryingto make the people self-reliant, the‘Vaidu’ (traditional healers) trainingprogram was launched. Under thisprogram, almost 200 traditionaltribal health workers were trained atfour personal health centres invarious allopathic and Ayurvedicmedical processes and in theprocuring of traditional medicine.

To help in this cause, the Abhiyan istrying to provide these healthworkers with a language module inthe local “pavri” language thatincludes medical terms andinteractive lessons for healthworkers.

Recently the Abhiyan has started ahealth care centre at Kumbhari, an


interior village in the Akrani Tehsil.Here every Sunday a diagnostichealth camp is held for 9 villages.The facilities include pre-natal andpost-natal check ups, follow up onmalnourished children, referenceservices for people who requiresurgical treatments or with chronicproblems along with generaltreatment for less serious patients.These health camps have seen verygood responses from the people,which have given encouragement tothe activists and doctors to keep upthe good work.

Dr Revati Joshi, Dr Ujjwala Dakareand Dr Pallavi Raut, who have firstcome to the valley during the 2003monsoons, have continued to workon the health front.

Experimention in Wind EnergyBegins

After the successful working of theMicro-Hydel electricity project inBilgaon the Narmada Nav NirmanAbhiyan activists have now taken onthe responsibility of generatingelectricity in another forest village,Trishul. Here it has been decided touse wind power to generateelectricity. Michael and ShivaniPatel who work on alternative lifeand energy in Gujarat, along withMark and Richel Pitter, PhDstudents, undertook surveysregarding wind speed. The responseof this survey was positive andproved the efficiency of wind powerin this area. Accordingly, aworkshop was arranged in Dhulia(Maharashtra) to train and informactivists. The study showed that atleast one windmill will be requiredper 100 people and the entire villagewill require at least 3 windmills. Theproject is due to be launched withina year’s time. In the meantime, thestruggle to electrify other villages isstill on.

Caste Certificates - en bloc!

Among its numerous constructiveactivities, the Narmada Nav NirmanAbhiyan has now taken up theresponsibility of providing adivasisof almost 64 villages with castecertificates. These certificates thatidentify people as tribals are of greatimportance to the people for provingtheir eligibility for the variousgovernment schemes for theScheduled Castes and Tribes (SCsand STs) as well as for admissions tovarious educational and professionalinstitutions. This importance is wellunderstood by government officialswhich has led to immense corruptionand red tape in the distribution ofcertificates, thus costing eachindividual almost Rs.1000 if s/hewere to approach the officialsdirectly. The NBA having identifiedthis problem has taken up theresponsibility of distributing thesecertificates to the people of 55villages in Akrani and 9 villages inAkkalkuva tehsil of the Nandurbardistrict. The bulk of thesecertificates (almost 8000) are alreadyready and the rest will be completedsoon. A government official has alsoput forward a helping hand in theprocess thus encouraging theactivists to keep up the good work.

Eminent dignitaries distributed thefirst few certificates on the 12th ofMay at the inauguration of theNNNA at Dhadgaon. The rest of thecertificates will be distributed by theactivists personally in the villagesitself, saving the people the troubleof travelling to the tehsil.

Shobha Wagh Library at Bolthan

In memory of Shobha Wagh, acommitted activist of the NBA whomet with a tragic death by drowningat Domkhedi village in 2003, NNNA isstarting a library in memory of her, atBolthan, her birthplace inMaharashtra. The library will be

named after Shobha. This initiative isdone through the Narmada NavNirman Abhiyan.

Narmada Beckons – YouthParticipation in the NarmadaStruggle

The number of youths andresearchers coming to the Narmadavalley for voluntary work and tounderstand the struggles of thepeople is ever increasing. Youthsfrom various backgrounds andnationalities keep coming to thevalley to participate in the struggle,understand the issues that affectpeople, to learn about dignified waysof fighting the destructive powers,strategic actions for initiating policychanges and alternativereconstruction.

Youths, apart from theirtemperament for exploration andphilanthropic concerns, are seriousabout learning more and more aboutthe faulty development triggered bya blind scientific positivist paradigmand the neo-liberal global politics ofresource appropriation andenvironmental and social costs thatare to be paid. An increasing interestto explore alternative ways of livingin all aspects of life is beingencouraged as a result of thisrealisation. Youths with varyingskills and knowledge have a lot tocontribute both in campaign and re-construction actions.

The twenty years of persistentcampaign has helped in spreadingawareness about the real dangersthat await the modern world,especially the poor. Today Universitytextbooks include chaptersexplaining the NBA cause andresearchers are interested in gettingto the depth of issues towards findingsolutions or alternatives. There are

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NBA in SolidarityThe people of the Narmada Valleyhave received support from hundredsand thousands of people from all overthe world in the last 20 years. TheNBA, in its turn, has tried to returnsupport and solidarity to othercommunities and movements acrossthe country. This past year, the NBAbecame very involved in givingsupport to the slum-evictedcommunities of Mumbai.

Since December 2004, thegovernment of Maharashtra haveundertaken massive and large-scaledemolitions in the slum communitiesof Mumbai. Over 90,000 homes havebeen demolished, evicting 3½ lakhpeople from their homes and hearths.In spite of the fact that the Congress-NCP government’s election-winningposition was that they would nottouch any slums that they establishedbefore 2000, the government wentback on its word barely 2 monthsafter coming into power, thanks tothe votes of the slum dwellers.

From December onwards, thousandsand thousands of families have beenrendered homeless. Some of them,like those at Rafiq Nagar and SatheNagar still live on the same land, buteven their modest homes are gone,and they instead live undertarpaulins. The malicious attitude ofthe government is visible by theamount of filthy garbage, which hasbeen dumped at these bastis (slums).But people have not left - they havenowhere to go. Other evictedcommunities have taken up residenceat the nearby graveyards. How cancities like Mumbai ever aspire to be aworld-class city when the lives of itsliving residents is worse than death?Other communities have been thrownoff their land, which has beencordoned off with barbed wire.

Private security guards keep peopleoff the land and harass the women.Men, women, children, babies, oldpeople, and pregnant women- no onehas been spared in this brutaldemolition drive.

The NBA, who understand thetrauma of displacement very well,have been supporting the slum-dwellers of Mumbai, by joining intheir actions, sharing and discussingtheir 20 years of experience withthese communities.

NBA in Tsunami Relief

In January 2005, a Team from NBAhad visited the Tsunami affectedareas in Tamilnadu and extendedsupport to the affected. Whetherdevelopmental or natural, anyuprooting of communities leading todispossession needs our immediatepriority in planning and action. Thedevastation due to tsunami is not somuch due to the earthquake nearIndonesia and the resultant giantwaves but due to the pathetic state ofour disaster warning system and lackof clearly worked out policies andstructures for relief andrehabilitation. Though the PrimeMinister wisely denied the reliefsupport offered by the US, even 7months after the disaster, many whosurvived the Tsunami still awaitappropriate rehabilitation and securemeans of livelihood.

NBA continues to uphold the cause ofthe affected and support their rightfuldemands not only for food, shelterand employment but also for aneffective Tsunami warning systemand eco-viable ways of creatingnatural protection, like mangroves, inthe coastal belt.

NBA joins other organizations towelcome Rozgar Adhikar Yatra

NBA participated in the 50 dayRozgar Adhikar Yatra (Right toEmployment Campaign) as it passedthrough Gujarat and MadhyaPradesh. The yatra was taken out toconsolidate the campaign for a full-fledged, universal and irreversibleEmployment Guarantee Scheme. Italso seeks to affirm the right to workas an as aspect of the fundamentalright to live with dignity.

We are in solidarity with the RozgarAdhikar Yatra and do not want anydilution of the EmploymentGuarantee Scheme.

NBA Team Against Coke:Participation in JanadhikarSatyagraha

A 101 days National resistance –Janadhikar (peoples’ power)Satyagraha- is on under the banner ofNAPM in solidarity with the adivasisof Plachimada (North Kerala)fighting against the Hindustan CocaCola Beverages Ltd. A team of 26people from NBA participated in thesame from May 30th to June 7th 05,which was conducted in front of theState Secretariat inThiruvananthapuram, the capital ofKerala.

The NBA believes that the struggleagainst Coke as well as Pepsi, thebottled water, is one against globalimperialism and its offshoot, theMNCs and the State, all in alliance tosnatch away the common naturalresources for profit-making.

The Kerala High Court’s judgementhas raised issues related to the powersof Gramsabha and Gram Panchayatsvis-à-vis those of the State - legislativeand judiciary as also the rights of thecorporate vs the citizenry, drinkingwater vs water markets.


Unravelling BhakraThe Bhakra Nangal project, completed and dedicated in 1963 by Jawaharlal Nehru is considered as ‘the new temple ofresurgent India’ and ‘the symbol of India’s progress’. It is accorded overwhelming, at times the sole credit for rescuingIndia from hunger and famine, for making India self-sufficient in food grains production. Forty years after it wascompleted, the project continues to be used as one of the main arguments in justifying new large dam projects in thecountry. Indeed, “What would be the situation without the Bhakra project?” is a question that is used less as a questionthan as an answer, as an argument, as a justification to gain legitimacy and hegemony for the construction of Megadams.

Unravelling Bhakra is a study, examining the reality behind these perceptions related to the Bhakra project. The studyattempts to look at the broad developmental impacts of the project, in particular its impact and contribution to foodsecurity in the country.

Published by: Manthan Adhyayan Kendra, Dashera Maidan Road, Badwani (M.P.) 451 551 Pages 372, A4, Rs. 150.00(individuals) Rs. 300.00 (institutions)

Narmada Sarvade? Only 15 pc villages covered till now: StudyKamran Sulaimani, The Indian Express, July 18, 2005 Ahmedabad, July 17: Though touted as one of the largest drinking water projects, the Narmada PipelineProject is yet to deliver on ground, say a study carried out by the citizens’ monitoring committee of NGOS —Centre for Development Alternatives, Pravah and IWMI-TATA Water Policy Programme (ITP).

According to the target set by the government, it planned to supply water to 8,215 villages by April 2004.However, so far only 15 per cent of the villages, that is about 1,224 villages have been covered under theproject says the study. Also, most of the villages shown ‘’officially covered under the project’’ are only onpaper. The actual survey shows something else.

In the survey carried out in 1,022 villages in the “covered’’ list of government, only 781 villages actuallyreceived Narmada water during November 2004 to January 2005. This was the third round of the studyconducted by the organisation. The districts in which the survey was undertaken were Ahmedabad, Amreli,Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Kutch and Rajkot.

Many of the villages which have been shown in the “officially covered list’’ of the government, actually didnot receive even a single drop of the water, report reveals. When asked why these villages have been shownunder the covered category, S K Vyas, Chief Engineer, Planning, Gujarat Water Supply and Sewerage Boardsaid: “The work is going on in these villages and will complete soon.’’ Of the 2700 km pipeline projectinitiated in 1999-2000, so far a pipeline covering 1343 km has been laid down.

Apart from this, the quality test of water is not being done under the Narmada Pipeline Project. Governmenthas even provided relaxation in the standards of water quality which may have adverse impact on health ofpeople, the report warns.

The results of the tests conducted on water samples collected by Gujarat Jalsewa Training Institute (GJTI)have not yet been made public, informs the report.

“That’s not our responsibility, people have to do it themselves in their villages and homes. However, we havesent 20 teams in various parts of the state to educate people about how to chlorinate water,’’ says Vyas.


Rampant Corruption inSSP

The daily news from Gujarat andMadhya Pradesh shows rampantcorruption happening in therehabilitation process, both whileacquiring land from original villagersand while distributing cash and otheramenities.In November 2004, 37 officials of theNarmada Valley DevelopmentAuthority were suspended after thediscovery of an enormousmisappropriation of funds during anauditing of Narmada ValleyDevelopment Authority (NVDA)accounts. This makes it evident whythe Government of Madhya Pradeshhas been taking the utterly illegalposition of allocating cashcompensation to PAFs instead ofcarrying out land-based rehabilitation.Obviously, there is far higher marginfor corruption with cashcompensation than with allotment oflands.

It is more than obvious that thedecision to allot cash instead of land,in utter violation of law, was not tobenefit the oustees but the officials,employees and a handful of politicalleaders who also were involved.

It is now clear that the team of officialswere deliberately leaving flaws in theland acquisition process, carrying outthe same in pieces, leaving out namesof families and their houses from therecords, conspiring to valuesimilar houses differently in thecompensation awards and evenrecording wrong survey levels.Despite all these anomalies, all PAFswere reported as ‘rehabilitated’, andthe dam height was fraudulently raisedon that basis.

All this was to scare the projectaffected families and make them run

to the respective offices to plead andoffer bribes. In spite of all theseattempts, when thousands of families,adivasis and non-adivasis, have stillbeen refusing to accept cash andinsisting on land-based rehabilitationpreceding submergence, the falsehoodof the authorities stands more thanexposed. It is a known fact thatbuilders, shopkeepers and some citydwellers have constructed thousandsof new houses in order to receivecompensation for them. Thus peoplenot even affected were receivingcompensation, and paying bribes tothe officials. As the allotment of cashcompensation has been temporarilysuspended, we hope for a change inthe situation.

Moreover it has come to light(Hindustan Times, January 24, 2005)that Subhash Yadav, the ex-deputyChief Minister of M.P. has divertedsome part of Rs. 240 crores meant forrehabilitation of SSP PAFs and hasinstead used it for developmentprojects in his own constituency. TheGujarat government after discoveringthis misappropriation of funds nowintends to recover the amount. Thus,while thousands of adivasi familiesremain in the Valley withoutrehabilitation, government officials aremaking profit out of their misfortuneand stealing the money intended forthem.

In Gujarat, several reports of scamsduring the land acquisition fordeveloping rehabilitation sites arecoming out. It is now clear, asreported in TNN (October 3, 2004),that the Sardar Sarovar PunarvasavatAgency has indeed bought poorquality lands at high prices, withcorrupt officials pocketing the extramoney.

Nearly 200 acres of land in thevillages of Dhantej and Tulsipur inVadodara district were acquired bythe state for the purpose ofrehabilitating Sardar Sarovar oustees.

Curiously, this poor land, which wasvalued at Rs. 22,000 per hectare, wasbought for an exorbitant price of Rs.1,85,820. The extra money, needless tosay, didn’t go to the farmers, but togovernment officials involved in thetransactions. Complaints fromfarmers who sold their land helped toexpose the scandal.

AK Singh, now a deputy collector-level official, has been charged alongwith two patwaris for cheating thepublic exchequer of Rs. 72.32 lakhand farmers of Rs. 41.32 lakh. Butbeyond this, the land they acquiredwas of very poor quality, much of itbarren and dotted with ravines. Onewonders how they intended to resettledisplaced farmers on it! These factsvindicate the grievance of many PAFsthat the land allotted to them are badas just and legitimate. The GRAGujarat has cleared more than 13000such petitions as redressed after theSSPA (Sardar Sarovar PunarvasavatAgency) produced the AgriculturalUniversity’s Certificate stating thatthe lands are productive! While thegovernment continues to prove thingscorrect on paper, the people continueto suffer.

All these incidents show the lack ofintegrity in the government officesimplementing the SSP and their lackof good faith in providingrehabilitation for dam-displacedfamilies.

Benefits - Claims andRealityThe benefits scenario is notreassuring either. The irrigation,drinking water and hydropowerclaims of the SSP are proving to behighly exaggerated (as the NBA hasindeed been saying for years!) asthese claims were merely for gaininglegitimacy and clearance for the ill-planned Project. One can see a slowand subtle shift in priorities as aresult of political and market

The Vignettes


compulsions. The beneficiaries aregoing to be very different from whatwas originally claimed, as it hasbecome clear that the drought proneareas are not being prioritised and thatthe water is indeed going elsewhere.Meanwhile nearly Rs. 18,000 crore ($4Billion) has already been spent on SSPand canal construction!

The Canal Network –Lifeline or Death noose?

The SSP Main Canal, which is toutedas an engineering marvel, faced largebreakages in several places lastmonsoon, which even stopped waterfrom flowing in the canals for almosttwo months from Aug 3, 2004 tillSeptember end. The canal system hasblocked the natural drainage of otherrivers in many places, resulting inflooding and water logging whenmonsoon rains arrive. The heavy rainslast monsoon caused large breaches inthe canal, which flooded severalvillages and required their evacuationovernight. Hundreds of hectares ofstanding crops were destroyed and theaffected people got very paltryamounts as compensation. This yearthe situation is worsening.

While the government claims that theMain canal (458 km in length inGujarat and 70 km into Rajasthan) isalmost 75% complete, the rest of the75000 km network of canals are noteven 30% completed. It may take atleast another Rs. 17000 crore tocomplete them according to currentestimates (out of the total Rs. 44000crores ($10 Billion) total projectedcost of the project, almost 80% is forthe Canal related works). TheGujarat government and its mediausually places the blame for projectdelay on the NBA, but the reality isthat the people’s struggle or even theSupreme Court stay has nothing todo with the canal construction. Thenhow come the canal construction is inthis shoddy state and not even half

way through, after 25 years ofconstruction?

Apart from this, over 23,000 familieswho are losing more than 25% of theirtitled lands because of the Main canaland the people affected by waterlogging and canal breaches are noteven recognized as project affectedand not compensated appropriately.

Tushar Shah of IWMI (Anand), whousually takes a pro-dam positionargues in one of his articles on theirrigation network of SSP, titled“Institutional Vacuum in the SardarSarovar Project” (EPW) that at thepresent time, it is difficult to seewhether the Sardar Sarovar Projectis really going to deliver on itsnumerous promises and claims. TheWater Users Associations have beencreated only on paper. A project thatlooks world class on paper is slowlybecoming a nightmare in reality.

The tenders for canal construction arefixed at unrealistically low prices andhence most of the contractors, forprofit reasons, do a shabby job and thefarmers are bound to suffer. Onecontractor said how he had to fix atender for 9 km of field channels atRs. 12 Lakhs. There was no way hecould complete that section within thatamount and still earn a profit. So hecommented that within four to fiveyears, most of the canal network isgoing to come under repairs. In thelong run, what is meant to be alifeline will turn out to be a deathnoose for Gujarat.

Withering Promises!

Not only the State’s promises with theSardar Sarovar canal network but thecanals itself stand breached. Themassive network of 75000 km(including the main, branch and sub-minors, field channels) in length, hasgiven much trouble even before itcould prove beneficial.

It all started in August 2004 – thefirst very monsoon and heavy rainssince the main canal began drawingwater. The big river-like canalbroke on August 3rd near Borda, inVadodara district. With thesiphons, narrower that it should be,got defunct with silt, cut trees andgarbage blocking the outlets.Surface siphons or the undergroundones, could not take the heavywater flows from fields and riversto the canals…. And the bigbreaches (50 to 70 ft each in threeplaces) drowned more than 7villages and their standing crops.700 houses and 5000 hectares ofagricultural lands got affected.

How ‘power’ful is SSPToday?

It was not long ago but till June-July2004 that the Gujarat as well as theCentral governments claimed theywould solve not just the water crisisbut also the power crisis with SardarSarovar Dam raised to 110.64 meters!None else but Mr. Modi himself duringhis Prachar Sabha – the electionpropaganda in Nimad, M.P. (adjacentto the dam-affected area) had pointedout to the height of the dias and said,“you give me this much of dam height(meaning 10m) and your state withglitter with SSP power”. The dam wasraised to 110.64m and yet… Ourinformation shows that M.P. didn’t getany power from the Dam, in spite ofhaving forcibly submerged its adivasivillages from Jalsindhi to KharyaBhadal and beyond, and having spentnot less than Rs.1500 crores. The stategovernment is mum, obviously.

The bureaucrats, if not the politiciansin Maharashtra played a gimmick! Onbeing questioned by NBA activists inan official meeting in Mantralaya,


they claimed and celebrated receivingof SSP power. The reply to our queryunder the Right to Information Act toogave the statistics: Atleast 30 MWreceived by the state. However, onchecking the minutes of all themeetings, August 2004 to February2005 of the Maharashtra StateElectricity Board meeting that recordall the sources and magnitude ofpower received by the state, it is clearthat Maharashtra too haven’treceived any. “How can we sayanything when there is no measuringequipment set up till date at the entrypoint to assess the SSP powerreceived?” question back theengineers at the grid. SSP hasgenerated very little power for veryshort period…..after the breachedcanal was temporarily repaired(September-October 2004) and thegeological problems at the powerhouse, murmured among the localworkers, resolved, but the one or twoturbines too stopped functioning,leaving everyone suspicious.

As TOI reported 2 years ago, it is amyth that the state’s power situationfacing a demand-supply gap of2000MW, would be eased wit SSDam reaching a height of 110.64metres. And yet the argument madeto seek NCA’s permission to drownthe people, homes and fields andraise the dam to 110.64, was that itwould bring in ‘power’. The dam isproved ‘powerless’, not people, tilldate.

The Exaggerated Image ofIrrigation and DrinkingWater Network

The Main Canal system is built tocarry about 40,000 cusecs of water. At110.64 m, half of that capacity isavailable in the canals but thegovernment was not able to use even50% of the available water since thecanal network at this stage is

insufficient. Much of the water ispresently diverted to urban use andindustries as against the stated plans.

With regards to the SaurashtraPipeline Project, a CAG (ComptrollerAuditor General) report from 2003,which was presented in the GujaratState Assembly, states that only 44 percent of the envisaged people receivedthe benefits after two years ofexecution of the augmented projectthat cost Rs 464.71 crores.

“Saurashtra pipeline didnot deliver”: CAG - Excerpts

The Asian Age, Ahmedabad edition,February 23, 2005The Indian Express, Ahmedabadedition, February 23, 2005 The Comptroller and Auditor Generalof India in its report for year endedMarch 31, 2003, raised severalanomalies in the implementation ofSaurashtra Pipe Line Project, statingthat only 44 per cent of the envisagedpeople received the benefits after twoyears of execution of the augmentedproject that cost Rs 464.71 crores.

The CAG report tabled in the StateAssembly on Monday said the SPPwas launched way back in 1999 forcatering to the drinking water needs of3.44 million people in 1,860 villages/towns in the three districts ofAhmedabad, Amreli and Bhavnagar.But only 543 villages had benefitedfrom as of March 2003, covering just1.51 million people. Not only this, 94% of the 1.51 million beneficiariescovered under the project weresupplied the water unsuitable forhuman consumption.

The Saurashtra Pipe Line Project wasenvisaged to cater to drinking waterneeds of 3.44 million people in 1,860villages and towns in three districtsbut benefits could be taken to only543 villages covering 1.51 million

people up to March 2003. The reportpointed out that the delay had beencaused by non-execution ofdistribution canal works and pitchingwork at Pariej. The report pointed outthe state government had diverteddrinking water intended for theSaurashtra region to a thermal powerplant of GEB at Wanakbori, VadodaraMunicipal ‘Corporation, andindustries situated in the cities ofBaroda and Ahmedabad, in violationof its own stipulation.

The report stated that the Gujaratgovernment had decided to lift waterfrom the Sardar Sarovar dam andsupply it to Pariej and Kanewal tanksthrough the Mahi Canal System todrought prone people of Saurashtra,which cost the state government Rs48.15 crores. However, of the 258.92mcm water lifted from Sardar Sarovaronly 52.20 mcm was supplied throughMahi canal.

The Comptroller and Auditor General(CAG) in his report for 2002-03 hasrubbished the BJP Government’sclaims of solving the drinking watercrisis in parts of Ahmedabad and theSaurashtra region through the Rs464.71 crore Saurashtra PipelineProject (SPP).

It further points out that when thepeople of Saurashtra region were inacute need of water, the governmentdecided to lift water from the SardarSarovar dam and supply it to Pariejand Kanewal tanks through the maincanal system at a cost of Rs 48.15crore. This included Rs 18.33 crorespent by Gujarat Electricity Board forproviding infrastructural facilities andenergy charges. As much as 258.59mcm water was lifted from the SardarSarovar, of which only 52.20 mcmwas supplied to the SPP through Mahicanal, while the remaining 206.39mcm was supplied for the GEB’sthermal power plant at Wanakbori, theVadodara Municipal Corporation andindustries situated in the VMC andAhmedabad district areas.


No recovery for the water charges fromthe corporations and industriesconcerned were carried out, the CAGreport said.”

Similar is the situation in Kutchwhere water has reached the southernport cities and industrial belt throughpipelines, with majority of the 848 oddvillages in Kutch being outside thesupply belt.

“Advertising Mirages toMask Reality” - HimanshuUpadhyaya digs deeper.

“While hoardings put up in Rajkotand other cities of Gujaratcongratulate Narendra Modi forhaving provided “pehla Narmada naanir ne have Vijali” (having ensuredthe drinking water from the Narmadariver, now moving towards ensuringelectricity), the Down To Earth issueof 15 June 2005 (downtoearth.org.in)has carried a full page advertisementfrom the Water and SanitationManagement Organisation (WASMO)showcasing how Gujarat has becomethe case for “Changing rurallandscape and lives”. WASMO isregistered as an autonomous bodyunder the Societies Registration Act of1860 and the Bombay Public Trust Actof 1960 with initial support from thegovernments of Netherlands andGujarat. The organisation is based inGandhinagar. Reports in the printmedia were telling quite a differentstory.”

“The reality has emerged elsewheretoo, not merely in the English press.Bhumiputra, a fortnightly Gujaratilanguage news publication, reportedon a recent seminar on water scarcityin the state. The seminar wasorganized by International WaterManagement Institute, Satyajeet Trust,Kutch Navnirman Abhiyan andGandhidham Chamber of Commerceand Industries. The report quotedspeakers opining that since the

Narmada based drinking waterpipeline could serve only 11% of thevillages, to rely on it blindly wouldonly be suicidal. The report also saidthat it was emphasized by speakerafter speaker that village communitiesmust think of creating reliable localresources and at the best long distancebulk water transfer can only beadopted as a supplementary measure.”(Courtesy: www.indiatogether.org)

Kevadia Eco-TourismProject

Two Houses/Shops Demolished, thefate of 900 families hanging!

As if displacing hundreds ofthousands of families from theirhomes wasn’t enough, the Gujaratgovernment is planning to add insultto this injury by turning the ancestrallands of the 6 Kevadia villages into atourist attraction. The GoG plans ondeveloping the Sardar Sarovar damand the surrounding areas as a touristdestination complete with golfcourses, water parks, upscale hotelsand restaurants, and adventure watersports.

This horrendous project will affectadivasis of the six villages of Kevadia,Waghodia, Kothi, Gora, Limdi andNavagam, which comprise the‘colony-affected villages’, which werenever even acknowledged as project-affected and hence never offered a justrehabilitation package. The lands ofthese villagers were acquired for thedam as early as 1961. In return theywere given a trivial and unjustcompensation of Rs. 80-250 per acre.They would’ve been evicted from theirproperties too, but as a result of theirintense and brave struggle, theymanaged to remain in their homesand painfully etched out theirlivelihoods. Even though they live inconstant police terror, they havemanaged to survive. This project is a

renewed threat to their survival. Theyare being offered a meagre Rs.36,000as maximum compensation, whichofficials falsely claim will fetch them 3acres of land, when in reality it won’tbe enough even for one acre! Most ofthem haven’t accepted this paltryamount but are still fighting to retaintheir homes, small pieces of land andtheir dignity.

But on May 5th, 05 the Modigovernment launched an assault onadivasis in the Kevadia area. On theday when SSP-affected familiestravelled to Delhi to join a large rallyof unorganised workers from all overthe country to demand comprehensivelegislation providing social andeconomic security, that same day twohouses/shops belonging to NatwarbhaiBhaiji Tadvi and ChandubhaiMaganbhai Tadvi were demolished bybulldozers in broad daylight. Thehouses, also used as small shopsserving the officials and labourers ofSardar Sarovar, were on land that oncebelonged to Natwarbhai. BothNatwarbhai and Chandubhai areoriginal adivasi inhabitants ofKevadia. They were ousted from theirland and houses in 1961 when theirlands along with standing crops wereacquisitioned by the government usingthe Land Acquisition Act of 1894.Along with 300+ families, Natwarbhailost his livelihood for the dam and theacquired lands were used for theofficers’ colony, storages, offices andguesthouses. Balance land was alsoallotted to Swaminarayan Trust,Television Centre, and a Museum forpromoting Adivasi Culture. In spite ofpromises and advice from the WorldBank to NCA, these colony-affectedfamilies were not declared as ProjectAffected Families, even though theirland was used for the infrastructureand works related to the Project andthey faced the trauma of displacement.The recent assault is in preparation foran eco-tourism project estimated at Rs.170 crores, with investments from aMauritius-based company, a water


parks company, ITDC and owners of astar Hotel in Baroda. Involvingacademicians from the Centre forEnvironmental Planning andTechnology (CEPT) and other suchbodies, the project planning is non-transparent and has not taken intoaccount the ground level situation atall. About 900 families on 1400hectares of land would have to beevicted and their structuresdemolished if the plan goes through.In addition, the project is bound todestroy the remaining good forestsaround the dam and affect villages inthe vicinity as well.

The attack on and demolition of 2houses is just the beginning. Earlierduring September 2004, six hutsbelonging to Noorya Poholya’sundeclared family members wereburnt down near the dam site, in thename of eco-tourism. They hadreturned from the resettlement sitesback to the original village in order toearn a better livelihood.

Garudeshwar Weir which is givenclearance recently as a support damdownstream of SSP is bound tosubmerge atleast 13 villages includingsome of the 6 Kevadia Colony affectedvillages.

The Thwarted Visit of GoIofficials

In the last six years, and especiallyafter the Supreme Court Judgment ofOctober 2000, there were no fieldvisits by the Narmada ControlAuthority, the official body thatmonitors the progress of the projectand rehabilitation. The dam has goneup from 80.3 to 110.64 meters duringthis period based purely on reportsfrom state governments claimingcomplete rehabilitation. This is aserious violation as the NCA is

depending solely on these reports,without verifying the field reality.

In this context, after our meetingswith Prime Minister Dr. ManmohanSingh and Ms. Sonia Gandhi, thePrime Minister on November 22,2004, gave a directive to the WaterResources Minister Mr. PriyaranjanDasmunshi who is also theChairperson of the Review Committeeof the NCA, to visit the valley andassess rehabilitation situation. TheChairperson of the R&R sub-groupMs. Sarita Prasad, who is also theSecretary of MSJ&E, was given asimilar directive.

Mr Dasmunshi decided to send hisPersonal Secretary and others for athree-day tour of the valley. A teamconsisting of Shri Manoj Agrawal(Secretary to Mr Dasmunshi), MrVarshneya (Central WaterCommission) and Mr Afroz Ahmed(Director of Rehabilitation, NCA)were to conduct a tour from December10th to 12th, which was to include theSSP-affected villages in the Nimadplains of Madhya Pradesh, the interiortribal villages in Jhabua district ofM.P and Nandurbar district ofMaharashtra which have already facedsubmergence, the six colony-affectedvillages near the Sardar Sarovar Damsite and the Gujarat resettlement sitesin order to assess the progress inrehabilitating affected families.

However, the team did not completethe stipulated tour. On December 11,the team attended three large publicmeetings in the plains of Nimad,where it was made evident to the teamthat rehabilitation had certainly notbeen completed, in fact, cashcompensation was being illegallydistributed and oustees were beingcheated in various ways. ThoughAhmed in his closing speech said thatthe team would be visiting theinterior adivasi areas the next day,the team vanished from the area latethat night and returned to Delhi,

thereby not attending the othermeetings planned and agreed upon bythe team itself.

Meanwhile, it came to light that theGujarat government had madeextensive preparations to sabotage thetour. Police patrols were stopping allbuses and trains coming into Gujarat,“looking for Medha Patkar” to arresther. Police were harassing PAFs atrehabilitation sites in Vadodara andNarmada districts, as if the PAFswere wrongfully raising their voicesto demand their full rights.Thousands of PAFs are facing seriouslivelihood issues in the R&R sites andgovernment is desperately trying tosuppress PAFs’ genuine voices frombeing heard outside.

The December 11 newspapers inGujarat reported that one ShriManubhai Patel, a Gujarat-basedoffice-bearer of an NGO hadthreatened to have an agitation alongwith Swami Sacchidanand, againstwhat they called a “Medha Patkar-ledteam sent by Sonia Gandhi.” TheNBA activists, undeterred by thesethreats, conducted its meetings in theadivasi area as well as in Gujarat,where they were harassed anddetained for hours by the police.

New Delhi Action – ATimely Intervention

The people of the Narmada valley hadto once again go to New Delhifollowing the thwarted visit of the GoIofficials. It became very obvious thatgovernment was trying to go aheadwith the dam in spite of the PrimeMinister’s directive for a fieldassessment regarding rehabilitation.So, on March 15, 2005, about 500people from the Narmada Valleyreached New Delhi to bring to focusthe complete lack of rehabilitationeven under the current dam height,and to protest the probable dam heightraise to 121 metres, as was constantly


being attempted by the Chief Ministerof Gujarat, Narendra Modi. Thepeople were there to demand answersfrom the various concerned Ministersand Secretaries.

Within a few hours of reaching thegates of Shastri Bhavan, theyreceived the welcome news of theSupreme Court case victory. Armedwith this verdict, they met with theMinister of Social Justice andEmpowerment, Mrs. Meira Kumaralong with her Secretary, Mrs. SaritaPrasad; Minister of Water Resources,Shri Priyaranjan Dasmunshi, membersof the Planning Commission, evenmembers of the World Bank, the bodyresponsible for initiating thisdisastrous project, who withdrew in1993 due to pressure from the affectedpeople. As soon as the Adivasisreached New Delhi and had meetings,Secretary, Ministry of Social justiceand Empowerment left for a visit tothe resettlement sites in Maharashtrawhich was very scandalous as sheavoided visiting the submergenceaffected villages in the valley wereadivasi families remain to berehabilitated.

The Delhi Action lasted from March15 to March 18. Over 800 people fromthe slum- evicted communities ofMumbai also joined the people fromthe Narmada Valley. Together, theyraised a battle cry against unjustdisplacement, whether it is in remoterural communities or visible urbancentres.

Chairperson STCommission Visits Valley

As an immediate result of the NewDelhi action, the Chairperson of theNational Commission for ScheduledTribes, Mr Kunwar Singh made athree-day visit to the Narmada rivervalley from April 12th-14th, visitingadivasi communities and villagesaffected by the Sardar Sarovar Project

(SSP). Shri Sriniwasulu, Member of theCommission, Shri R.C. Durga, Directorof ST Commission of Maharashtra andM.P. and others, accompanied him.They visited several adivasi villages ofMadhya Pradesh, Maharashtra andrehabilitation sites in Gujarat, andconvened 8 meetings in differentvillages to assess the state ofrehabilitation of those displaced by theSSP. A large number of officials ofeach state toured with the Chairman.

The adivasis spoke of their trauma andthe agony of displacement, and of howtheir legally guaranteed rehabilitationstill evades them even though manythousands have already facedsubmergence. They brought out casesof legal violations and contempt ofcourt. They also gave instances ofcheating and corruption by theGovernment officials in allotting land.It was established before the chairmanthat there are thousands of familiesresiding in the villages, in thesubmergence zone at the present damheight itself, while the official reportsshow them as rehabilitated.

The Chairman heard all the issuespatiently and sympathetically for allthree days. He said that he would becalling a meeting in Indore on the 29th

and 30th of April, to discuss theseissues with the concerned NVDAofficials. In addition, he will alsoconvene a national-level meeting inDelhi, where the representatives of theaffected people will also be officiallyinvited, to discuss these issues indepth. He promised to solve the issuesof Narmada adivasis after questioningofficials on various issues. He addedthat he would also like to raise largernational issues about adivasis whoare facing displacement withoutrehabilitation since the constitutiondemands the protection of theirrights.

Participating in NationalPolicy Making

The Narmada Bachao Andolan hasbeen raising questions about thedevelopment paradigm and policy,displacement, the environment, andthe rights of tribals, farmers, peasantsand marginalized people in thecountry. In many ways, NBA tried toinitiate the discourse arounddisplacement building up in thiscountry, at a time when large projectswere not questioned, and displacementwas considered necessary for thegreater common good.

We have come a long way since then.In this regard, NBA has also beenactively contributing to the national-level efforts for giving our input in thevarious national policies that are beingexplored at the Centre. The NationalAdvisory Council, chaired by Mrs.Sonia Gandhi, is in the process ofpreparing a National Policy forDisplacement and Rehabilitation, inwhich we have been providingsubstantial input, based on decades ofground-level work. Similarly, with theCentre considering the National Rightto Information Bill, the EmploymentGuarantee Act and the procedures forFree and Prior Informed Consent, wehave been making significant inputs inthese processes.

Towards a National Policy

National Convention on Displacementwas organized on Nov 30th – Dec 1st byNAPM with Habitat International,Indian Social Institute, MATU, DelhiVikas Manch and many allies ofNAPM including NBA

About 250 of Narmada (Sardar Sarovar)affected and hundreds of others fromJharkhand, Bihar, Orissa, A.P, M.P,Himachal Pradesh, UP, Gujarat,Maharashtra, Delhi and Rajasthanparticipated. They all had the


representatives of some of the politicalparties CPI, CPM, RSP, Forward Bloc,JD (S) who just not supported butsigned the resolution and the CentralWater Resources Minister Mr.Priyaranjan Dasmunshi himself waspresent for a session, was questionedand spoke on the alternative ways ofharnessing water resources.

V P Singh, the former Prime Ministerof India inaugurated the conference,condemning displacement that leadsto destitution as unacceptable andinhuman.

A strong and detailed resolutionpassed marks the determination andcomprehensive perspective both.

Therefore, a small group of senioractivists had gathered and drafted aNational Rehabilitation Policy, with aneed to change the NDA-promoted2003 policy on rehabilitation. Ameeting was held with NBA asparticipant, with members of theNational Advisory Council andofficials from the PlanningCommission, The Ministry for SocialJustice and Empowerment, theMinistry of Tribal Affairs and theMinistry of Rural Development. Whatnext? We all await a final nod andformation of the policy, which doesn’trequire much public debate orlegislative approval in this country.

Research on the InterLinking of Rivers

The Parliamentary Committee onWater Resources recently inviteddepositions from the public regardingtheir views on the ILR proposal. Aletter was submitted from our part,asking for an opportunity to make anoral presentation to the committee. Inthe submission, concerns onprocedural, socio-economic,environmental and technical issueswere raised. It was also highlightedthat the government has only released

one feasibility report out of thirty,making it difficult for the public toform an opinion on the project.

Since the government has stated thatthe Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal is oneof the priority links, we are studyingthis link in closer detail. The aim ofthis link is to divert surplus watersfrom the Parbati, Kalisindh, andNewaj rivers to either the Gandhisagaror Ranapratapsagar reservoirs acrossthe Chambal River for irrigationpurposes. It is being assessed whetherthese rivers are actually surplus basinsand whether the Chambal is a deficitbasin. Additionally the potential forrainwater harvesting is also beingestimated.

News from Goi Dam

The struggle for rehabilitation in Goidam in Madhya Pradesh is gainingmomentum. In 2004, the MadhyaPradesh Pollution Control Boardinvited the affected families for apublic hearing, as it was a requirementunder the Ministry to Environment togo ahead with the projectimplementation. The issue is that inorder to conduct a public hearing,certain studies like the EnvironmentalImpact Assessment (EIA) should be inplace first, which was not done.

The people out rightly rejected thehearing but instead went to theofficials and protested the unjust andundemocratic haste shown to go aheadwith the procedures circumventing theregulations. They demandedtransparency and the release of fullinformation regarding the projectincluding the Detailed Project Report,Rehabilitation Plan, Economicaspects, Environmental ImpactAssessment, Flora and Fauna,Downstream Impacts etc. Until thestudies are ready, the people havedecided to boycott the public hearing,which is required to get clearance.

Whether Goi or SSP, Bargi orMaheshwar, Narmada Sagar (IndiraSagar) or Omkareshwar, Vega orJobat, the NBA continues to resist theundemocratic and destructive waterharnessing plans and its illegalimplementation being done in theNarmada Valley, in the name ofdevelopment.

Crocs will make way fortourists at dam site

The state government plans tohave crocodiles removed fromfour dykes at the Narmada damsite to make them safe for watersports.

SSNNL wants to develop thedam and surrounding regions asa tourist spot, with facilities forboating and water sports at thefour dykes that hold waterdischarged from the canal headhydel station and divert it forirrigation. But crocodiles are adanger: in the last five years,they have attacked and killedtwo villagers fetching waterfrom the dykes.

It was decided at the meeting totrap the reptiles and releasethem in the main reservoir,which won’t be open to tourists.The forest department, whichwill undertake the task,estimates this will take fourmonths and cost some Rs 10lakh.

Since the crocodile is protectedunder Schedule I of the IndianWildlife Act, the plan will haveto be cleared by the centre’senvironment ministry.

Courtesy: Indian ExpressJuly 13, 2005


Our humble contributions to thebuilding of people’s power movementsas also to the policy-making couldn’thave come true without your co-operation and support.

The latest public confession andcommitment by the CM of ArunachalPradesh following the South Asianmeeting in Nirjuli is an achievementof the same. “As far as possible,storage projects involving high damswill be avoided,” the Apanggovernment’s communiqué said.Explaining the government’s decision,Arunachal Pradesh Chief SecretaryAshok Kumar said in New Delhi:“Huge reservoirs create displacementproblems and lead to submergence oflarge tracts of land. Consequently, therehabilitation process becomes muchmore complicated.”

Much more, however, is demanded,whether in the form of boardroompolitics, legal intervention or massaction. We can’t but challenge theADB’s financing to privatising of ourwaters, whether by the HindustanCoca Cola Beverages Ltd, Pepsi or theother giants whom we are fightingunder the NAPM’s banner. Water isprecious and should not bemarketable. It is vital, it supports life.Let us judiciously use it as our rightand protect with all our might.

Until a fair rehabilitation policy and arational water policy are created andfollowed, until a self-reliant plan toharness our resources with a value-framework of equity and justice isattained, the struggle andreconstruction will continue in thevalley and beyond.

We’ve had some notable recentsuccesses such as a favourableSupreme Court decision on March 15,2005 upholding the rights of affectedfamilies to rehabilitation and showing

the government’s claims ofrehabilitation to be false. Thisvindicates what the NBA has beensaying for years: that rehabilitation isindeed not complete and thus theraising of the dam height, which iscurrently 110.64 metres, is illegal. Infact, the verdict shows that evenfamilies affected at 80 metres still lackthe mandated rehabilitation. The workat SARDAR SAROVAR had to besuspended. With this positive verdict,we need to fight now harder than everto ensure that the Court’s judgement isenforced, that those who have alreadyfaced illegal submergence berehabilitated right away, before themonsoon begins, and that the dam notbe built any higher until rehabilitationof all families is completed.

When there isn’t adequate land (atleast 10,000 hectares needed) forcompleting rehabilitation and thereisn’t adequate money (at leastRs.22,000 crores ($5 billion) more) forcompleting the project, when canalsare not ready for the optimum use ofthe waters available today and whileseveral problems such as water-logging persist, then one must demandthat the dam be stopped at 110.64meters and the Sardar Sarovar Projectbe reviewed.

Our colleagues, continuing to struggleagainst the devastation due to theNarmada Sagar and the unjustifiableMaheshwar, Veda and Goi dams in theNarmada Valley, are exposing theMadhya Pradesh government, its flawsand farcical claims, both.

We earnestly appeal to you, to openyour hearts and continue to generouslysupport the genuine efforts of strugglefor Justice and Reconstruction goingon in the Narmada Valley andbeyond, whether through cash andkind or through volunteering andcampaigning.

Narmada Bachao Andolan

>> Page 1

plenty of primary resource materialsavailable with NBA, not only as textsbut the experiences of the dam-affected populations and activists instruggle. Many educationalinstitutions like TTS (Madurai),SNDT (Mumbai), NCAS (Pune) andorganizations like Spic Mackay (NewDelhi), Initiative (Mumbai) regularlysent students, for example Urvashi,Priyank, Nivedita, Junnka, Rajneesh,Peter, Davidson and others came thisyear so far, for voluntary work andexposure to the valley. Students likeand Anand and Kinjal even came outwith effective reports and photofeatures on key issues. The NBAenables the youth to get clarity aboutthe complex issues to perceive theinter-connection between variousissues.

For further information contactNBA offices (see inside front coverfor details) or [email protected] [email protected]

>> Page 10

‘Corrupted’ Dams

A new report by theinternational corruption-fightinggroup TransparencyInternational (TI) focuses oncorruption in the constructionindustry, and calls attention to anumber of large dam projects.The Global Corruption Report2005 includes detailedassessments of the state ofcorruption in 40 countries, anddescribes the findings of thelatest research into corruptionand ways to combat it.

The new corruption report isavailable from http://www.transparency.org/


Events at a GlanceMay 7, 2004 - Bhoomi Haq Satyagraha at Somaval beginsJune 10 - Bhoomi Haq Satyagraha WithdrawnJuly 12 – 15 - Mumbai DharnaJuly- Sept 2004 - Devastating submergence in theNarmada Valley, dam is at 110.64 mJuly end - Rajpipla collector calls the representatives of sixKevadia Colony affected villages, tells them to takeRs.36,000 and leave their villages within 3 months.August 2004 - CAG Report severely criticizes indiscriminatespending in SSPAugust 2004 - SSP Canal-head generators startedproducing electricity on a minimum scaleAugust 1-5 - 5 day Dharna in ShahadaAugust 3 - The Main Canal breaks near Borda village inVadodara district causing flooding of several villages inthe command area of SSP.August 6 - SSP started overflowing at 110.64 mAugust 10 - The Main Canal again breaks near Kadi inAhmedabadAugust 10 - District Collector of Jhabua (M.P.) and officialsvisit Kakrana but leave before meeting the peopleAugust 11 - Earth Quake of 3.4 Richter Scale nearAlirajpur (M.P) in the submergence areaAugust 27 - The reservoir level reaches 116.95 m at the damsite while the dam was at 110.64 mSeptember 6 - Quotations for Kevadia Tourism Projectfloated by Gujarat governmentSeptember 6 - Six hutments of declared PAFs who havereturned back to their hamlet in Borida (village Vadgam,Gujarat) due to livelihood reasons were damaged by forestofficialsSeptember 6 -7 - The Team of IPT Panellists visits theNarmada valley to conduct Public Hearings – team consistsof Mr. Harsh Mander, Dr. B.D. Sharma and Ms. ChitraPalekarSeptember 9 - Six hutments belonging to undeclared PAFsburnt down near dam site by forest officialsLate September - Medha Patkar and other NBA activistsmeet the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmoham Singh to give himinformation about the shoddy status of rehabilitation forSSP.Early November - 37 NVDA Officials suspended forcorruption charges in rehabilitation processMid-November - Medha Patkar along with other NBAactivists meets Mrs. Sonia Gandhi to impress upon her thecomplete lack of rehabilitation in the valley.November 22 - Press Release from the PMO directing theWater Resources Minister and R&R subgroup to makefield visits to the Narmada Valley to check truth aboutrehabilitation

‘Swadeshi’ power

Mr. Ashutosh Govarikar, Lagaan fame filmdirector-producer had it again. He made anotheraward winning film and telecast across thecountry was ‘Swadeshi’, depicting a ruralcommunity action happens to be based on ourBilgaon Micro-hydel power project with a 15KW capacity. Mrs and Mr Govarikar stayed inBilgaon, learnt the project and made thisimpactful film using many scenes, remindingone of Andolan’s programs and practices.

Many of us, however, felt shocked to see thatthe film shows a youth – NRI – coming fromUSA, the global centre of power to transformIndia. While this is certainly a story that canmotivate the youth settled abroad, the fact thatIndia youths, well trained and better equippedto deal with peculiar Indian realities – theinequity within, the community’s strength andresources, too can and do take up thechallenge.

Bilgaon project, erected by the adivasis of thevillage who did shramadan along with thetechnical expertise of Mr. Anilkumar and Madhuof People’s School of Energy, Kannoor, Keralaand his colleagues, who have successfullycompleted a number of micro-hydels in Keralaand one in Domkhedi. Anilbhai, who plannedthe project to the last minute detail also workedwith the people. This brilliant engineer with thehands in his soil and heart with the commonpeople in this country has a vision to workshopexpertise that makes him different. The Bilgaonproject received financial and material supportto the Bilgaon Navnirman Samiti from manyindividuals including young engineers-activistssettled abroad, who are a part of Association forIndia’s Development and Bombay SarvodayaFriendship Centre. ‘Swadeshi’ technology andresources, with no displacement, submergenceor destruction, is our strength and this work onalternative is a challenge to Sardar Sarovar andus, both.


meters annulling the decision of the M. P State governmentand the GRAMarch 15-19 - New Delhi ActionMarch 24-26 - Supreme Court Advocates Muralidhar andSanjay Parikh, who fought the victorious case, visit thevalleyMarch 25 - Holi at Domkhedi celebrated with festivity andresolveApril 3 - 4 houses burnt down in Thuvavi R&R site inGujarat by fire caused from faulty electricity linesApril 7 - Environment Sub-Group meets again. NBA sends aletter pointing out that environmental compliance isseriously lacking, and urges review of clearance upto 121metres, also keeping in mind the latest SC verdict. ESGChairman does not acknowledge the letter and clearance isnot revoked.April 12-14 - NCST Chairperson Shri Kunwar Singh visitedthe Valley, 12th in Nimad, 13 in Anjanwara and Nimgavan, 14th

in Lunadra-1 and Karnet -2 R&R sites in GujaratMay 5-7 - Narmada and Mumbai people again descend onDelhi to attend the Unorganized Workers Rally in RamlilaMaidan, Delhi and to dialogue with concerned officialsMay 12-15 - Yatra in North Maharashtra of Narmada andMumbai slum evicted people to raise awareness on currentsituation in both the issuesMay 17 - Yatra reaches Mumbai; Indefinite dharna ofMaharashtra Narmada people and Mumbai slum evictedpeople begins at Azad Maidan, Mumbai, demanding talkswith the govt and rehabilitation before monsoon.May 28 - Rehabilitation Minister of Maharashtra, Mr. Kadammeets a delegation of PAFs with Yogini Khanolkar, MedhaPatkar and Pratibha Shinde of Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti.June 15 - Three months pass since the Supreme Courtverdict, which stated that rehabilitation of all applicants mustbe completed within three months. Some applicants areallotted uncultivable land at Kesur. The orders of the Courtstand violated by the government.June 15 - Rs. 20 lakh of damage occurred when a transformerburst at the River Bed Power House (RBPH) of the dam.Power generation was stopped.June 19-24 - SSP starts overflowing at 111.04 metres, becauseof water released from upstream dam, Indira Sagar.June 24 - At 3 pm, tremors are felt at the dam site for over aminute, which measure 3 on Richter scale.June 24 - Real estate dealer and builder A.K. Singh wasarrested in connection with land scams in the SardarSarovar Punarvasavat Agency. He bought poor ravinelands from landowners and then re-sold it to SSPA forrehabilitation of oustees at a much higher price.June - July - Terrible floods in South Gujarat, devastation inthe resettlement sites as a result of monsoon cropdestruction due to water-loggingAugust - August marks 20 years of STRUGGLE by NBAfrom the time Medha Patkar first went into the interioradivasi villages affected by the project, and people beganto get organized.

Late November - False Information about Rehabilitation putup in NCA Website showing Rehabilitation under 110.64 mas “Zero”.November 24-25 - Gujarat GRA visits a few R&R sites tofurnish data to clear the ATR of the state governmentshowing rehabilitation as completed at 121.92 mNov 30- Dec 1 - Convention on Development, Displacementand Rehabilitation in New Delhi; Hundreds of affectedpeople from Narmada participateDecember 2-3 - Conference on Interlinking of Rivers in NewDelhiDecember 2 - Delhi Action in front of the Ministry of SocialJustice and Empowerment and the Ministry of WaterResourcesDecember 10 - The Personal Secretary of the WaterResources Minister begins his tour of the Narmada Valley inBadwani. 3 large public meetings in the affected villages inthe Nimad plains make the falsity and sham of rehabilitationevident.December 10 late night - In the middle of the night, the teamreturned back to New Delhi without completing assessmentof rehabilitationDecember 31 - Rajpipla Collector calls the Kevadia villagersfor the second time. People clearly rejected the existingcompensation package and demanded equal status asreservoir affected PAFs

2005January 6 - The Environmental Subgroup of NCA givesclearance for the dam height to 121.92 meters thoughreports were not readyJanuary 6-14 - Medha Patkar and other NBA and NAPMactivists work in Tamilnadu to contribute to Tsunami reliefefforts at the ground level.January middle - PAFs from Bharad village in Maharashtrashifted to Javda R&R site with the site not even half readyFebruary 8 - Release of the IPT Report on SSP Rehabilitationin New DelhiFebruary 9 - NBA activists participate and give solidarity inthe Indo-Pak friendship event organized in Mumbai towelcome friends visiting from PakistanFebruary 12 - Mass arrest at Rafiq Nagar (evicted slum),Mumbai. Medha Patkar and NBA activists also get arrestedto show solidarity.February 25-27 - Bal Mela celebrated in Jalsindhi, bringingtogether children of all the Jeevanshalas for play,competitions, and cultural programs and to better theirunderstanding of the struggle and of adivasi identity.March 1 - Rajpipla Collector calls Kevadia people for thethird time for negotiationsMarch 14 - Bhopal action; International Day Against Dams,and for RiversMarch 15 - Supreme Court Verdict delivered in favour ofNBA ordering the states to give 2 hectares of land to eachdeclared major son and to resettle all the temporarilyaffected PAFs before the dam height is raised from 110.64


Appeal

It is crisis time once more (the monsoons are alreadyhere), and though we have so far succeeded in preventingthe increase in the height of the Sardar Sarovar Project,the rehabilitation scenario has been very slow – everyounce of success has been fought tooth and nail!!! Jansahayog - Last year we have delivered relief to 370adivasi families - 25 families from Gujarat, 87 from M.P.,258 from Maharashtra - who would not have been able tosurvive without peoples’ support. Narmada Nav NirmanAbhiyan and the Bombay Sarvodaya Friendship Centrehave contributed equally and worked in close cooperationand coordination to ensure that the Jansahayog programworked effectively. 2 Quintals of Makkai (corn ) or 1 Quintal Makkai and 1Quintal Jowar were supplied to each of these families,depending on availability / cost / preference in that area.Also, 20 Kgs. Dal, 1 Kg. Chilli powder and 1 Kg. saltwere provided. 177 of these families needed a second round of reliefduring the year, the rest managed with one round of helpfrom us. The cost of food per round of relief, per family,comes to approximately Rs 2,500 /-, including transport. Despite tremendous poverty and need all around, we havehad to restrict our aid specifically to those families wholive by the river Narmada and who have lost all or almostall their resources to submergence and have not beenrehabilitated so far. Jansahayog is not charity – it is support from thosemembers of civil society who are convinced that thevaliant people of the Narmada valley, who have fought fornearly 20 years for their right to life and livelihood, cancontinue to the non-violent struggle for their birthrightsand a sustainable future in a rehabilitation site, if they canfirst survive! Support is most urgently required : General donations for the struggle, dharnas andprogrammes , office expenses – phone bills, transport,xeroxes, faxes, honorarium for full time activists etc. Jansahayog: An urgent need to supply food grains etc.and in a few cases, even shelter, to 300 adivasi familiesat Rs 5000 per family.

Some of our requirements

There is a great demand for new Jeevanshals. Some of the15, which are running currently, need to be expanded orturned into residential schools instead of day schools. Aday-school for around 40 children can be started and runat the cost of less than Rs 25,000 /- a year. A ResidentialSchool would require Rs 1,00,000 /- per year , to run andmaintain. ♦ A Hostel with a capacity of 200 students is coming upat Dhule, with tremendous efforts put in by our Dhulesupport group. Ex-students of our Jeevanshalas areadmitted into regular schools after class 4 and are housedlargely in government hostels, where we find that the foodand other facilities are often far from adequate. It isenvisaged that if we could have the group under our care,not only would they benefit, but continued value orientedinputs would result in a crop of future, well educated andbetter prepared Karyakartas. Sponsorship would be at therate of Rs 6000/- per child for one year. ♦ A plot of land has been donated in Badwani .As it is,we have been receiving warnings from our current land-lord in Badwani and are seriously considering building apermanent office on the donated plot, which would thenserve as a multi – purpose centre. The cost would be Rs. 3lakhs – approximately. ♦ We also have a few students who have excelled insports and have reached the national level without anyformal aid. One of them seems to have Olympic levelpotential. If anyone interested in sports is ready to givethese kids a boost – please put them in touch with us. Please make cheques payable to “ Narmada Nav NirmanAbhiyan” and mail to Pervin Jehangir, 261, Jupiter Apts,41, New Cuffe Parade, Mumbai 400 005 Tax relief under 80 G is available. We accept donations inIndian Rupees only. Please ensure that your names andaddresses are legibly written in order to facilitate postingof receipts. Please also send a covering letter specifyingthe purpose of the donation, if you want to support one orother of the above causes. Appreciating and acknowledging your dedication andsupport over the years, We remain, Narmada Nav Nirman Abhiyan

NS July 2005 - Nadir2 Narmada Samachar July 2005 Published by: Narmada Bachao Andolan Narmada Bachao...

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Transcript of NS July 2005 - Nadir2 Narmada Samachar July 2005 Published by: Narmada Bachao Andolan Narmada Bachao...