Statue Of Unity: The World’s Tallest But Here’s What It Could Have Paid For

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October 31, 2018

Mumbai: The Statue of Unity, built at an estimated cost of Rs 2,989 crore, could have instead funded two new Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) campuses, five Indian Institute of Management (IIM) campuses and six Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) missions to Mars.

The statue’s construction cost is more than double the estimated amount for proposals submitted to the central government by the Gujarat government to include in Pradhanmantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (Prime Ministers Agriculture-Irrigation Scheme). The construction cost could have been used to irrigate 40,192 hectares of land, cover repair, renovation & restoration of 162 minor irrigation schemes and the construction of 425 small check-dams.

The Statue of Unity–representing the symbolic unification of India post-Independence–will be unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 31, 2018, as tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on his 143rd birth anniversary. The statue is now the world’s tallest at 182 metres (597 feet) or nearly 100 times taller than someone 6 feet tall.

Sardar Patel — independent India’s first deputy prime minister and home minister–was popularly known as the ‘Iron Man of India’ for his role in bringing about the merger of the princely states post-independence.

Resentment among farmers and locals
Thousands of tribals and farmers in Gujarat are planning a mass protest against the unveiling of the statue. They are unhappy with the cost of the project and with the lack of adequate rehabilitation efforts and water shortages in the catchment area where the statue is located.
The statue’s construction has affected 75,000 tribals across 72 villages in Gujarat’s Narmada district, NDTV reported on October 20, 2018. Of these villages, 32 have been most affected.

In 19 villages, rehabilitation has allegedly not been complete while compensation has been paid but further commitments like land and jobs have not been fulfilled in 13 villages.

Farmers have also threatened to drown themselves in the Narmada river as protest during the statue’s unveiling event, The Indian Express reported on October 29, 2018.

Resentment has also been building among more than 1,500 farmers in four districts—Chhota Udepur, Panchmahals, Vadodara and Narmada— who had sold 262,000 tonne sugarcane to the Sardar Sugar Mill in Sankheda, which was shut down due to financial mismanagement by board members. They are still waiting for their dues amounting to Rs 12 crore.

“At a time when Gujarat is facing a water crisis due to lower availability in the Narmada dam, I think the statue project could have been postponed by a year,” according to Ghanshyam Shah, a political expert based in Gujarat Mint reported on October 30, 2018.

Vijendra Tadvi, a farmer in Gujarat has been finding it difficult to irrigate his three acre farm, the BBC reported on October 28, 2018. “Instead of spending money on a giant statue, the government should have used it for farmers in the district,” he said.

Here’s what Rs 2,989 crore spent on the statue is worth:

Over eight times the amount (Rs 365 crore) allotted to Gujarat by the central government in 2017-18 under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (National Agriculture Development Scheme) as well as nearly five times the amount (Rs 602 crore) approved by the state government for 56 new schemes and 32 continuous projects under the scheme.
More than double the estimated cost (Rs 1,090 crore) of two water pipeline projects. Firstly, a project based on the Kadana reservoir that will irrigate 10,000 hectare in Dahod and Mahisagar districts. Second, the Dinod-Boridra lift irrigation project which will provide irrigation to 1,800 hectare within Surat district.
More than double the estimated amount (Rs 1,114 crore) for proposals submitted to the central government by the Gujarat government to include in Pradhanmantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (Prime Ministers Agriculture Irrigation Scheme). The projects will irrigate 40,192 hectares of land, cover the repair, renovation & restoration of 162 minor irrigation schemes and the construction of 425 small check-dams.

The statue construction cost could build:

Two new IIT campuses (considering one IIT campus costs Rs 1,167 crore).
Two AIIMS campuses (considering one AIIMS cost Rs 1,103 crore).
Five new permanent IIM campuses (considering one IIM campus costs Rs 539 crore).
Five new solar power plants, each producing 75 megawatts of power (considering one power plant costs Rs 528 crore).
Six Mars missions (considering one mission costs Rs 450 crore) and three Chandrayaan-2 (Moon) missions (considering one mission costs Rs 800 crore) by the Indian Space Research Organisation.

World’s tallest statue with state of art technology
The Statue of Unity is now 29 metres taller than the Spring Temple Buddha in China– which at 153 metres was previously the tallest statue in the world–and twice the height of the Statue of Liberty (93 metres) in the United States.
The Veera Abhaya Anjaneya Hanuman Swami in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, was previously the tallest statue (41 meters or 135 feet) in India.
“The Statue [Of Unity] will not only remind every individual of our great nation’s freedom struggle but will also inspire the people of our country to inculcate Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s visionary ideologies of unity, patriotism, inclusive growth and good governance,” the project portal reads under its objectives.

Courtesy: India Spend

US political candidate Padma Kuppa endorses Hindutva agenda of supremacy

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October 31, 2018

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The news that Padma Kuppa, an Indian-American is running for Michigan’s State House of Representatives, has raised concern among the other Indian Americans because of her right winged ideologies.

Her writings reflect shades of Hindu nationalism and anti Muslim and anti-Christian stance. She is said to support Indian laws which criminalize people who change their religion without government permission which is a direct violation of the fundamental constitutional right of religious freedom.

Through her writings she has clearly explained her beliefs. One can see the kind of communal feelings she harbours when she writes about conversion of people into Christianity saying that this actually makes the Hindus intolerant and defensive. Besides she attributes westernization of daughters to conversion to Christianity which is worrying other Indian Americans.

Kuppa has even called the 2002 pogrom of Muslims in Gujrat as “retaliatory violence in Gujarat, where both Hindus and Muslims were killed.” But the Human rights watch findings say that it was anything but spontaneous. The 2002 genocide was state sponsored according to the HRW findings.

“Padma Kuppa’s support for Indian laws which criminalize people who change their religion without government permission is an assault on the fabric of a free society,” remarks Arvin Valmuci, a spokesperson for Organization for Minorities of India (OFMI). “The United Nations and the U.S. State Department have warned about these laws, which lead to violence and pogroms, especially against Indian Christians. But it doesn’t matter to Kuppa: she’s busy demanding American votes and seeking the $70,000 salary of a Michigan state representative.”
In 2018, watchdog group Open Doors USA ranked India as the world’s 11th most dangerous country for Christians, with radical groups and organizations like Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Shiv Sena and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and even the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) being behind the persecution of Christians.

“Laws which empower the government to permit or deny a person’s right to convert are the very definition of a denial of religious freedom,” says Valmuci. “Yet there is much more about Kuppa that worries us. Not only does she excuse intolerance in response to people exercising their right to free speech by promoting their religion, but Kuppa glamorizes Hindutva and justifies Prime Minister Modi’s 2002 Gujarat Genocide, which killed thousands of Muslims.”

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has said that Hindutva is an ideology “which holds non-Hindus as foreign to India.”

Since the BJP took power in 2014, there has been a sharp rise in violence targeting religious minorities as well as India’s 200 million Dalits (formerly known as Untouchables or outcastes). According to 2018 reports by HRW, “Vigilante violence aimed at religious minorities, marginalized communities, and critics of the government — often carried out by groups claiming to support the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) — became an increasing threat in India in 2017. The government failed to promptly or credibly investigate the attacks, while many senior BJP leaders publicly promoted Hindu supremacy and ultra-nationalism, which encouraged further violence.”

However, Kuppa contradicted HRW by dismissing these concerns. According to her religious conversion is far greater a threat than nationalism.”

Balbir Singh Dhillon, the current president of West Sacramento Sikh Gurdwara shared his experience when he was on a pilgrimage to holy sites in India and Pakistan in 1996, he was arrested under false charges, jailed for three months, and tortured. “If I wasn’t an American citizen, I would have been killed for my faith,” says Dhillon.

He was only released after over 50 U.S. congressional representatives signed a letter to the U.S. State Department which pressured India to admit it had no proof he committed any crime.

He further added that Padma Kuppa’s support for anti-conversion laws is a great offense to the First Amendment freedom of religion we have as Americans,”These anti-conversion laws treat people who just want to change their religion like criminals. I know from my own experience of fleeing religious persecution in India that it puts religious minorities in danger to require them to ask the government for permission to convert.”

Besides endorsing anti-conversion laws, Kuppa approves Ghar Wapsi,”as well which she calls “the effort to bring Hindus ‘back to the fold.’” Like all the Hindutva nationalists she too believes that all Indians were once Hindus and now they need to come back to Hinduism
“We’re deeply concerned that Kuppa embraces the idea that Indian equals Hindu,” says Maryam Mirza, a Kashmiri Muslim from Michigan. “She has called herself an ‘ethnic Hindu,’ which is not a real thing, and says that India’s Republic Day is part of the Hindu religious heritage — can you imagine a candidate calling America’s Independence Day part of their Christian heritage? She defends use of the ‘Hindutva’ word, and I’ve seen she even quotes from sources like Koenraad Elst, an Islamophobic writer who wants to uproot Islam from India.”

Furthermore, Kuppa writes, “While I often use the term Hindu-American to identify myself, I am nearly as likely to use the term Indian-American. The two terms have much overlap for me as an ethnic Hindu, since faith and culture are so intertwined.” She adds, “India and Hinduism are so intertwined that I must reconsider the importance of celebrating India and in identifying as an Indian-American.” She additionally claims that “proud Hindus of Indian origin” can “celebrate India’s Republic Day as part of their religious heritage.”

In another article, she criticizes an event where Hindu women wore hijab while Muslim women wore sari. “There are many women in America who choose to wear a hijab, but there are activists who don’t – voices from within who may push beyond what people in the Islamic community want to hear,” she writes. “There is in fact no choice for Muslim women in many parts of the world about wearing not only a hijab, but a burka.” Saying the activists should not “sell out” by wearing hijab, she claimed that Muslim women “cannot escape a culture that oppresses them.”

“Kuppa’s writings appear to be lifted directly from the RSS’s talking points.

Valmuci concludes, “Does America truly want or need elected representatives who pen apologetics for religious nationalists, endorse the Hindutva agenda of supremacy, and justify violence against religious minorities and marginalized peoples?”

Courtesy: Two Circles

The Sabarimala Verdict: Whose Morality, Whose Freedom?

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October 31, 2018

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A significant social and political churning is underway on the question of temple entry at the Sabarimala shrine in Kerala. The verdict of the five-judge constitution bench on 28^th September, granting women between the ages of ten and fifty the right to enter the shrine, has set the stage for a direct confrontation between contrary worldviews and social currents. Ranged on one side are defenders of the status quo who see the entry of women of menstrual age into Sabarimala as an assault on their traditions and religion. These champions of orthodoxy include the high priests of the temple, the erstwhile Pandalam royal family, upper caste organisations like the Nair Service Society, and hardline outfits like the Ayyappa Dharma Sena which have the direct backing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Opposed to these forces are a range of progressive organisations and movements which view the Sabarimala issue as a question of gender justice. They seek to use the Supreme Court judgment to advance the struggle against social prejudice and patriarchal mindsets. In this they have received the active support of the Left-led state government.

Image Courtesy: Live Mint

That these contrasting viewpoints have great social import is visible in the heated, and sometimes violent, nature of the disputes on the Sabarimala question. The violent agitations by a section of the Sabarimala devotees have been an important subject of public discussion over the last few days. The ideological conflict has implications for the basic character of our polity as well. It involves fundamental questions about the kind of constitutional democracy we aspire to have. The essence of this ideological dispute can be seen in the individual judgments delivered on 28^th September. The five-judge bench delivered four separate judgments: three ruling in favour of women’s entry and one ruling against. Of the four, two judgments in particular stand out in so far as they present starkly contrasting constitutional visions. The majority opinion of Justice D Y Chandrachud and the dissenting view of Justice Indu Malhotra are important statements within the ongoing ideological debate.

The main issue which divides the two constitutional visions is the centrality of individual rights within constitutional democracy. Justice Chandrachud’s entire judgment is based on the premise that individual dignity lies at the core of liberal constitutionalism. The Indian constitution, on his view, recognizes this centrality by enumerating justice, liberty, equality and fraternity as overarching political ideals in its preamble. All constitutional provisions including the freedom of religion, therefore, must be interpreted in view of this larger objective. Individual dignity must serve as the principal value guiding the public life of the country.

This emphasis enables Justice Chandrachud to identify a deep connection between constitutional interpretation and tasks of social transformation. Drawing on the commitment of towering Constituent Assembly members like B.R. Ambedkar to objectives of social change, he argues that constitutional governance in India must be centrally concerned with ending caste and gender-based discrimination. Constitutional morality, in other words, partly consists in enabling society to break out of the shackles of oppressive and unequal social institutions.

In line with this understanding of constitutional morality, Justice Chandrachud interprets Article 25 of the Constitution as fundamentally dealing with the individual’s freedom of religion. On the basis of this interpretation, he is able to argue that entering the Sabarimala shrine is a part of the individual woman’s fundamental right “to profess, practice and propagate religion”. Within the history of judicial pronouncements on the right to freedom of religion under Articles 25 and 26, this marks a significant change. The bulk of the litigation under these articles has resulted from religious groups and institutions challenging state intervention in their practices. Freedom of religion under the Indian constitution has acquired, as a consequence, the character of group entitlement vis-à-vis the state. This is despite the fact that Article 25, particularly in its second clause, does provide ample scope for intervention by the state.

Justice Chandrachud breaks from this trend by arguing that freedom of religion under Article 25 also empowers individuals to make claims against groups. Thus, denial of rights to worship to any particular section within a religion or denomination could amount to a violation of Article 25. Prohibiting women between the ages of ten and fifty from entering Sabarimala, therefore, amounts to a violation of their freedom of religion. This interpretation of freedom of religion under Article 25 transforms in one fell swoop a provision which has often been used by religious groups to preserve unjust discriminatory practices into a weapon of reform and transformation. Through a simple interpretive innovation, equality and individual dignity as yardsticks which religious practices can be judged by.
This shift in interpretation is related to another striking argument by Justice Chandrachud. Through a long and complex history of judicial interventions, the Supreme Court has set up a requirement that practices must belong to the essence of a religion in order for them to enjoy protection under Articles 25 and 26. This “essential practices” doctrine obviously raises the question of how the essence of a religion is to be determined, an issue which has received much judicial deliberation. Early on, in cases like Commissioner, Hindu Religious Endowments, Madras v. Sri Lakshmindra Thirtha Swamiar of Shirur Mutt (1954), judges adopted a cautious approach leaving it to the followers of a religion to determine what its essential practices were. Over the next few decades, however, the judiciary came to adopt a more rigorous standard. In Durgah Committee, Ajmer v. Syed Hussain Ali (1962), for instance, Justice Gajendragadkar held that the judiciary needed to rigorously study the history and doctrine of a religious group to determine what the latter’s essential practices were.

The “essential practices” doctrine has provided the judiciary an opportunity for religious reform. By holding regressive and discriminatory practices to be inessential to the basic tenets of specific religions, the judiciary has deprived many such practices of constitutional protection. It must be remembered that a number of these cases, like Sri Venkataramana Devaru v. State of Mysore (1958), have been concerned with the entry of Dalits and other oppressed sections into public temples. Justice Chandrachud points out that there have been, nevertheless, two basic problems with the doctrine. First, as means of reform it allows an assessment of religious practice only in terms of religion itself. Thus, as long as a practice is understood to be essential to a religion or denomination, it would pass judicial muster no matter how oppressive or discriminatory. Second, it puts the court in the position of a theological arbiter using theological standards, rather than a custodian of the constitution using constitutional standards of assessment. In effect, it puts religion outside the pale of assessment in terms of its compatibility with the constitutional values of individual dignity and equality. Justice Chandrachud proposes, instead, an “anti-exclusion” principle, wherein the judiciary does not judge a religious practice in terms of essentiality, but rather only enquires into its relationship with the range of freedoms that underpin the constitutional framework. A religious practice, thus, would be bereft of constitutional protection if it simply fell afoul of core constitutional values. Again, it must be noted that this shift from “essential practices” to “anti-exclusion” is premised on the centrality of individual dignity, equality and social transformation to the constitutional project.

As against this pervasive stress on individual dignity, Justice Indu Malhotra keeps group entitlement at the centre of constitutional morality. Laying stress on “secularism” rather than justice and equality, she argues for an overall attitude of judicial non-intervention in religious matters. Constitutional morality, in her account, is not geared to a transformative project. Articles 25 and 26, therefore, continue to be seen as “secular” bulwarks affording protection to religious groups and their practice. The individual freedom of religion under Article 25 is given short shrift.

This constitutional vision is reflected in Justice Malhotra’s treatment of the “essential practices” doctrine. While for Justices Chandrachud, Mishra and Khanwilkar, the exclusion of women from entering Sabarimala fails the test of essential practice, and Justice Nariman remains ambivalent on the question, Justice Malhotra categorically sees the practice as an essential one. One of the chief reasons behind Justice Malhotra’s opinion on this point is that in interpreting the “essential practices” doctrine she goes back to the judgment in the Shirur Mutt case which granted almost “complete autonomy” to the members of a religious community in defining its practices, thereby ignoring decades of jurisprudential development on this question. Through this she denies in effect any independent role for the judiciary in ascertaining the essential doctrine of a religious group. This amounts to an acceptance, in other words, of all the problematic features of the “essential practices” doctrine while rejecting whatever little scope for reform it afforded.

Why would Justice Malhotra ignore an entire series of landmark judgments in understanding the “essential practices” doctrine? Why would she take the word of representatives of a religious community in defining what the latter’s practices are? Given the overall character of her judgment, one can plausibly seek answers in the centrality of group entitlement, as against individual dignity, in her conception of constitutional morality and secularism. It must be remembered that self-proclaimed representatives of a religious community or denomination, in litigations or otherwise, often represent the most powerful and influential sections of that community. Identification of essential religious practice can square very neatly then with the blanket preservation of tradition no matter how inegalitarian elements of the latter may be. The idea underlying Justice Malhotra’s position seems to be that uncritical reverence is the only permissible attitude that the constitutional framework can have towards religious groups. Reform and change are none of the constitution’s business.

It is interesting to note that proponents of women’s entry into Sabarimala, from Left activists to leaders of women’s groups, have explicitly characterized the entry ban and its supporters as “communal”. In doing so, they have invoked a notion of secularism and constitutional morality that unambiguously gives a central place to individual dignity and equality. Rejection of age-old prejudice and removal of discrimination seem to be a vital part of this secular ideal. Caste and patriarchy are openly identified as the antithesis of constitutional values.

In a sense, Amit Shah’s recent statement that “courts should only pass judgments that can be implemented” captures the core of the ideological conflict. While he was referring to courts and their powers, he might as well have talked about the constitution.

Arjun Sengupta teaches at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Hyderabad.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

The Tall Price That Gujarat’s Tribals Are Paying for the ‘Tallest’ Statue

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October 31, 2018

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Their land gone and facing displacement, tribals in some villages are busy salvaging ready crops after water was released from the dam to beautify the backdrop of the Rs 3,000 crore ‘Statue of Unity’ for VIP eyes.

About 500 metres from the nearly Rs 3,000 crore ‘Statue of Unity’ in Narmada district, stand five huts. One of them is the abode of Ambaben Poonabhai, a 60-year-old woman who was once sarpanch of Limdi group gram panchayat of Limdi and Navagam villages.
Navagam is one of those villages where land will be submerged as water rises in the weir of Narmada river. As the ‘Statue of Unity’ is set to inaugurated on October 31, water from the dam has been released in the weir for the VIPs and guests to witness a river full of water. (A weir is a barrier across the horizontal width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the river level)

“About 40 acres of land in Navagam will be submerged till October 31. Farmers had cultivated vegetables which are almost ready. Nobody told us that water is being released from the dam. We are witnessing the water level rise by the hour and land submerging gradually,” Ambaben told Newsclick.

“Farmers are frantically working in the fields trying to salvage what they can,” adds Ambaben, who waits along with other tribal residents of Navagam as their land submerges gradually.

“A family owns between 2-4 acres of land. There are poor tribal families who sustain themselves on crops and vegetables they grow on their small patch of land. Now that the land will be submerged, most of them will have no means of feeding themselves or their family,” says Sanjay Tadvi, son of Ambaben, and a resident of Navagam.

The Heavy Price That Tribals Paid for ‘Statue of Unity’

About 500 metres from the nearly Rs 3,000 crore ‘Statue of Unity’ in Narmada district, stand five huts. One of them is the abode of Ambaben Poonabhai, a 60-year-old woman who was once sarpanch of Limdi group gram panchayat of Limdi and Navagam villages.

In ruins stands remains of a home of a tribal family of 12, demolished a week back to widen the road to Statue of Unity. Location- Waghariya village, about 1 km from Statue of Unity

The shop that was once by the road side was demolished to widen the road. The land was never formally acquired and demolished as it fell in the way. The owner rebuilt the shop and now fears that shop will submerge any-day when water rises in the weir that flows down as water is being released for inauguration.

Angry tribals tore apart posters in the Narmada district

New posters were put up with picture of Birsa Munda in center and picture of Modi in the corner.

Throat of PM slit in a poster in outskirts of Narmada district still stands

Handwritten notice of bandh on October 31st all across Rajpipla market.

Police deployed to protect posters in Narmada district after local tribals tore the posters

The new road being built for inauguration and then for tourists is part of the project. Three villages have lost their land completely for widening of this road on the hill.

The statue of Unity

This one hut stands, about 500 metres from the statue, while others around it have been demolished. This spot used to be a village once.

“We have already lost a major portion of our land when the road to Sardar Sarovar dam was being built. The Gujarat government promised us 5 acres per family and jobs for whoever is above 18 years of age. But neither were we allotted any piece of land nor did we get any job. We have submitted memorandums and letters to the district authorities to the office of Chief Minister in Gandhinagar, but in vain. After a long silence, they told us, the project missed counting us in the victim list, and assured that our names shall be included when the weir is built. Instead of being rehabilitated, we lost our portion of the remaining land acquired for widening the road to the ‘Statue of Unity’, and remaining shall drown as the water level rises in the weir,” adds Sanjay, who works as a labourer in Kevadiya Colony that fetches him Rs 200 a day.
Six villages – Navagam, Waghariya, Limdi, Kevadiya, Kothi and Gora — immediately around the Sadhu Bet, the location of the ‘Statue of Unity’ are badly affected. Of these, Waghariya has lost all of its land, while Kevadiya village has lost about 90% of land.

Noticeably, villagers of Kevadiya were displaced just a week ago when the road to Sadhu Bet was being widened from two lanes to four lanes. Amidst strong protests, the police lathi-charged indiscriminately injuring even women and detained the villagers for 24 hours. When the villagers returned to the village after their release, every house along the road had been demolished. The residents of Kevadiya have now settled a kilometre away amid a rocky patch of land. Sarojben, who led the protest and a few others are under constant police watch and refused to speak on the issue.

Police Presence Prior to Inauguration
“By the evening of October 30, police personnel will be deployed in front of every household around the villages surrounding Sadhu Bet, barring locals from stepping out of their homes,” Lakhanbhai, an activist working with tribals of the area, told Newsclick.
“This is how the locals are restricted from freely moving in their own land every time a VIP visits the area,” he adds.

“The water pipeline and several handpumps in the area have been demolished while widening the road. Six villages of the area have no means of drinking water. When we approached the district authorities, they turned a blind eye. Later Larsen and Toubro (L&T), the company that is working on the project, arranged for water to be delivered by tankers of its own accord. The tankers deliver water twice a day to those living by the side of the road. But villagers whose houses were demolished and have been pushed away from the road have no access to the tanker water. This has been the situation for a month now,” says Govind Bhai Tadvi, sarpanch of Waghariya village.

“Besides the amount of water that each family is getting through tanker isn’t enough,” he adds.

All the residents of Waghariya have been displaced due to the project of ‘Statue of Unity’. Out of an entire village that had an population of about 1,500, 15 displaced families have been rehabilitated in mud huts in an area with no amenities like electricity or drinking water. The rest of them are being pushed to accept land very far away from their homes.

“Our family was offered a housing plot in Pansoli village near Dabhoi, about 60 kilometres from our house, and the land for cultivation was allotted at Tel Taalav, about 10 kilometres away from the housing plot. How can a farmer travel 10 kilometre to cultivate his field every day?” shares Govindbhai.

“We refused to accept land at such a distance from our original home. Later, we were offered Rs 5 lakh, but we refused that too as the market value of the land my family owns is more than Rs 1 crore,” adds Govindbhai.

“Six acres of land that our family still owns at the bank of the weir will be submerged in two days. I don’t think we can salvage all of the cotton we have cultivated,” he says, pointing towards several sacks of cotton stacked up in his house, the crop that he could salvage so far.

‘We Will Not Leave Our Land’
The villagers resent being dumped to the fringes without being consulted even once.

“The locals were never taken into confidence or told that such a huge scale of tourist place shall be built on and around their homes. The tribals of the area have been losing their land since the inception of the Sardar Sarovar dam. Now they have built such a massive statue, valley of flowers and Bharat Sreshth Bhawan (guest house of every state) is to come up along with it. Does the government ever think on whose land are they building the projects? The locals here solely depend on agriculture. If their land is snatched how will they survive. We will not leave our land,” says Lakhanbhai.

A protest and bandh have been called in the district by Praful Vasava, a local tribal leader. About 100 tribal organisations of 15 tribal-dominated districts of Gujarat have supported the cause. The tribals have been tearing off the posters of the project featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani.

Massive police force has been deployed in Narmada district viewing the resistance from the tribals. Noticeably, police personnel have also been deployed to protect the posters.

“About 85% of the population of Narmada district are tribals. The land in the district is protected under the Fifth Cchedule. As per law, if land is to be acquired, the gram sabha has to agree to give it away. But while building the Narmada weir dam or ‘Statue of Unity’, the Gujarat government did not bother to take permission of the gram sabha of respective villages. Land from 13 villages have been acquired for the weir dam. Tribals of these villages have neither received money or land elsewhere in lieu of their land lost to the dam,” Vasava said.

“In total 72 villages and 75,000 tribal villagers have been affected by the project of ‘Statue of Unity’. The government is destroying our homes, land and culture It is a fight of jal, jungle, zameen (water, forest and land),” adds Vasava, who apprehends he shall be detained by the evening of October 30.

Courtesy: https://www.newsclick.in/

An Open Letter to Sardar Patel: Medha Patkar

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October 31, 2018

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As mass displacement accompanies the unveiling of Sardar Patel’s Unity statue in Gujarat, Medha Patkar writes this letter in anguish to Patel: about the callousness of this government in displacing Adivasi villages and tribals

Respected Sardar Patelji, Namaskar!

Wherever you may be, as our leader of the Freedom Movement, your soul, I know, rests here on the motherland whose beloved son you have always been. Your act of freeing India from the shackles of royal states and estates and of freeing the farmers from the oppressive tax laws of the British regime is unprecedented even to this day. As the first home minister of the first government of Independent India, your firm, non-communal and social approach to the unparalleled violence and the relief work thereafter, was appreciated by none else than Mahatmaji as unique, despite the controversy created by some.

You stood tall in the historical freedom struggle of India as Sardar. But you know, while throwing your legacy by the way side, a 182 meter-high statue of yours is being unveiled in a few days to be the tallest in the world! Can you imagine who has built your new avatar? Many Chinese and some local Adivasi and national labourers have worked overnight on the ‘Sadhu Bet’, a hillock with Adivasi deity of their faith. You would surely ask, on whose land would this statue stand? Whose plan was this? This land, river, forest that your avatar is going to stand on, belongs to Adivasis. The very same people your government and then leaders, Mahatma to Pandit Nehru recognised as villagers with rights, as republics and offered security through Panchsheel. The forefathers of the Indian Constitution, with Babasaheb at the helm, also granted them right to peace and good government, through the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution and later, the PESA Act towards self-reliance.

You would surely watch from the highland, the scene down into the River Narmada and its banks to the basin wide and far. Your vision will find their huts and hamlets in the hills and hillocks one of which was Varata Bawa Tekri under your feet. Do remember the days when you carried out the operation to integrate the princely states with delicacy and democracy, to make most of them sacrifice voluntarily for unity. By the way, your avatar is also claimed to be for the same goal, unity…yet with the insanity of impinging upon not just their land but also their rights. Would you ever think of using ‘force’ against these simple and least monetised, self-reliant people, as had to be done against the princely state of Junagadh then?

Sardar, these Adivasis also belong to the farming community you recognised as the contributors who feed and need to lead. Today, if only you know the reasons behind their laying life and cuddling death, you would have taken to the same task and struggle, combing villages and fields as in August 1942. But the most shocking for you, who acquired royal properties, dealt with transfers, created ‘privy purses,’ would be to know the ways and means of transferring today the life supporting resources of the very brethren you fought for, receiving acclaim for the social movement you built. Non-cooperation was the non-violent tool you exercised, under the guidance of Bapu then.

The same tool is now a weapon in the hands of the Indian rulers, practising neo-colonial ideals. They do not bring in the horses or the Sepoys or take over properties of the rich and the mighty. They take over the very life line: land, water, river, forest and fish of the weak and the marginalised. Could you ever dream of the Indian State – the ICS cadres who you were treated as the ‘Patron Saint’ of, and the cabinet members, you warned against ‘partiality and corruptibility’ and incited against a path of rectitude in your speech on April 21, 1947 – assuming itself to be powerful enough to not only tax farmers but also exploit them through low prices for the produce and extract GST from small traders and evict the market infrastructure of the poor, the hawkers, in the name of huge, gigantic infrastructure? Is your legacy at stake, Sardar? How could they tolerate suicides by lakhs of farmers?

Do please have a look on your left and you will find the six-lane highway running up to 120 km in length parallel to Narmada. Lakhs of trees, more than 100-years-old, within the last year had to make way for this highway. People of Rajpipla, once a princely state that is recorded in history for having defeated Aurangzeb’s forces are compelled to be mute spectators, having no channel to vent their Mann ki Baat.

You, Sardar, once the chairman of the committees responsible for minorities, tribals, excluded areas and fundamental rights must also know that when your avatar will be well lit and decorated, the tribal communities, being repressed and oppressed, are to be thrown into darkness. Their lands, in six villages not even legally acquired, following British law of 1894, but simply taken over, paying a paltry sum of Rs 80 to Rs 200 per acre in 1961, are now being diverted for luxurious hotels named after ‘Shreshtha Bharath’ or Swaminarayan Complex and even a museum with their own remnants.

You, who were successful in recovering the farmlands for the farmers refusing to pay the oppressive tax would come down to support these tribals who are not granted anything as per the new law of 2013, nor are gifted with alternative land but are being made to accept a Rs 7 lakh package which they too are non-cooperating with. You were at the forefront of such a struggle and having threatened to leave Congress, had made your party accept the path of non-violent yet militant battle that led you into jail in 1940 and a solid mass protest in 1942, with shutdown of none less than civil services! With your ability to organise the countrymen as also to face the onslaught of the imperialist forces, you could certainly challenge the present powers, the creators of your avatar, vouching for unity, but practising divide and rule tactics and promoting or allowing brutality, while denying diversity of creed, culture and religion.

If only you would take a step forward and downward into the valley of Narmada, you would surely be overwhelmed with the simplicity of these nature-based generations-old communities, of Adivasis, farmers and fishworkers. Many of them had already lost their lands as it was acquired by the state for the Dam, again in your name, Sardar Sarovar, without paying them compensation worth a rupee. They too walked in your steps, faced attacks, and were sent to jails. (Jail? You had called it a ‘place for peace’, in 1943, remember?) The government in 2013 issued orders and made promises to give land for land. But ultimately they are being cheated and evicted out of their balance land for tourism! Do please have an eye on these fast track operations around, as only you can stop them from further damage…only you can!
Sardar, the scale and impact of forcible encroachment upon the lives of the communities in this most ancient Narmada civilisation and the valley, can be seen by someone of your stature and perspective. No one can hold your hand today, but you could and would drag the sena/army of bureaucrats out of their villages with your ‘iron hand’ if only you witnessed their might against the toilers’ rights. Will you, our beloved leader, engage the powers that be in a thorough review and reflection? Gone are the days when yourself and Gandhiji had such a discourse on the floor of the jail and evolved a vision of swaraj and self-reliance, of agriculture and village republics. Gone are the days when you valued production by masses to ensure equity in both the economy and the social life.

I feel ashamed to tell you that there was no need to bring in 1,500 Chinese workers here while excluding local adivasis from Gujarat, your own state, many of whom are compelled to migrate and harvest sugarcane, working day and night. I feel shaken to share with you what is being planned and publicised in your name… Shopping malls, five or seven star hotels, luxurious guest houses, helipads, statewise bhavans on the river bank with all its paraphernalia the shops, markets, massive food plaza, food courts, walk ways, travelators and what not. All this when not less than 35,000 families, affected by the Dam in your name since years, are still awaiting full, fair and just rehabilitation. They never marketised Narmada, nor its water. They are damned by the Dam but are most awed and anguished to see their sacrifice being taken as a capital for the tourism industry and as everyone knows, political tourism too. They are sad that the farmers of Gujarat, the progeny of your movements are left high and dry… while the corporates reap huge benefits.

Your contribution to the farmers and vision of India are enshrined with that of Mahatmaji and Nehru in all our memories. You accepted Panditji, and vowed for unity within Congress. The common citizens of this country have no place in this gigantic play today, Sardar. All lights will be on you, the avatar, Sardar, while throwing everything that you practised and preached is intentionally left to the dark recesses of history books and the future of the Adivasis and this country is being sealed with the new paradigm.

Your generation was aware of two vices – corruption and communalism. The spirit behind your then sermons is needed today. Your NO to communalism reflected in your appeal to the religious leaders during communal violence following the partition that was inevitable. Your speeches across India and a letter to Golwalkar Guruji against the Hindu fundamentalist vision of RSS asking them to change and get integrated, is to be read and imbibed by every citizen of the country today. Those who are hiding behind your new Avatar, and marketing you, have never engaged themselves to understand your thoughts and your action to over come violence, to move from monarchies to democracy, from monopoly and hegemony to equity and fraternity. They do not visit the families of those lynched by mobs. They do not respect the resolutions of the adivasis. They do not value agriculture or the agriculturists. But they are staking a claim to your name, Sardar.

They hail the tallness of your Avatar while they are consumed in their own pettiness. Adivasis know all this. Evicted since 1961, the Adivasis can’t take it anymore. No Jaykaras ! No celebrations from them. They mourn, they protest, they condemn and challenge as they know their mother river, not just gods and goddesses but culture and nature, and their very life is threatened again and again. Their forefathers too had fought the British, and with their perseverance had held on to land then. They are in a new freedom struggle, asserting self-determination. They are not a part of this game in your name, worth Rs. 3,500 crores with about 200 crores illegally collected from public enterprises as CSR, as per a CAG report. What is CSR ? That will be for another letter on another day Sardar…

Your avatar shall stand tall, Sardar. In the midst of the river, on the Varata Bawa Tekri. We watch with hope that your Avatar shall watch over and stop all that is unjust, against unity, equity and sustainability. We seek the blessings and support of your iron hand for today and for ever. We look forward to having you there when adivasis raise their voice, amidst festive tourists who will gather on the 31st and everyday, with or without your legacy, but all vows for a new touristocracy. We know you alone will listen to the adi-vasis, their cry halt, inspiring them to fight for their rights and the Mother River’s too !. Narmada appeals to you, Sardar !

With respectful tribute,
Medha Patkar

Azeem’s Death Result of Scuffle between Groups of Boys: Police

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October 30, 2018

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Elaborating on the tragic death of 8-year old madrassa student Mohammed Azeem from the Begumpur locality of Malviya Nagar in Delhi last Thursday, the Delhi Police have said that the madrassa student did not die as a result of communal violence but following a scuffle between two groups of boys.

A detailed statement issued by Vijay Kumar, DCP South District, New Delhi, said: “At around 9/10 AM, Azeem, along with his four other friends, were playing on an empty plot adjacent to Madrasa. In the meantime, four local boys, all residents of Valmiki Camp came there and one of them threw a stone over them. Madrassa students asked local boys to refrain. But after some time, the local boys again threw fire cracker towards them and started abusing. When madrassa students objected, a scuffle broke out and one of madrassa student was roughed up in the scuffle and fell down on the ground. He sustained some severe internal injuries. Madrassa students immediately informed the maulana of madrassa about the incident.”

The police statement emphasised that all possible evidences, including CCTV footages, have been collected, and statements of eye witnesses were recorded during the investigation and that all the four juveniles were apprehended following legal procedure.

The Delhi Police said that it has come to its notice that “attempts are being made in some quarters to give the incident a communal colour by spreading wrong facts and rumours. It is once again reiterated that so far investigations have not revealed any such communal angle in this incident and it was purely a scuffle that broke out between minors (madrassa students and local boys), all aged around 10-13 years, over playing on the plot of land that led to the unfortunate death of one minor boy and all the involved juveniles have already been apprehended.”

“General public is also advised not to pay any heed to any such rumours/fake news and report the matter to the police, if anything comes to their notice,” the statement said.
Speaking to the media outside the hospital, Azeem’s father Mohammad Kameel Ahmed said that the incident was a case of a fight between two groups of children during which his son was thrown over a parked bike sustaining serious injuries, leading to his death.

“This was not a case of a communal clash. An accident led to my son’s death, please do not politicise the issue,” said the grieving father who works as a farmer in Mewat.

Sabrangindia Clarifies
Sabrangindia had earlier, on the basis of a Caravan Daily story, reported, that Azeem had died after being assaulted by a group of young persons following a dispute over a bike. This was based on the accounts of madrassa students and teachers and activists from the United Against Hate group offered during a Facebook live video, that Azeem had died after being assaulted by a group of youngsters and falling over a bike. It is possible however, in hindsight, the word ‘Lynched’ in the headline of our report was perhaps a bit hasty and out of place. The error is regretted. We believe in speaking truth and upholding the highest principles of fair, honest and responsible journalism. –Editors

UP Police arbitrarily books 80 Muslims under UAPA

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October 30, 2018

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Human rights groups Rihai Manch and NCHRO delegation visited the area where a communal clash took place and found the enaction of UAPA unnecessary. They claimed that the complaint was prepared even before the incident took place.

Lucknow: In a press meet, members of a fact-finding team of Rihai Manch and NCHRO spoke to reporters about booking 80 Muslim men under the draconian UAPA law after visiting Bahraich district in Uttar Pradesh.

UP Police have allegedly booked 80 Muslims and named 100-200 others as unknown, according to an FIR lodged in Baundi police station. The FIR has been filed by a member of the Durga Puja procession Ashish Kumar Shukla. It was alleged that on 20th October 2018, a procession from a few villages for the immersion of a Durga idol turned violent at Khaira Bazar. Reports suggest that 40 Muslim are in police custody including those who have not been named in the FIR.

“Those 80 Muslims along with 100-200 others were hiding on the way of the procession and when it was passing through the Khaira village on way to Badnapur for immersion, they attacked it. The complainant claimed in the FIR that the attackers were armed with guns, pistols, bombs and swords. He named three persons and 50-60 unknown persons from the procession who he said were seriously injured in the attack,” a report by Caravan Daily said.

A report also suggested that Muslim shops and households were damaged in the presence of the police and many men and women fled after the violence.

Human rights groups Rihai Manch and NCHRO (National Confederation of Human Rights Organizations), whose joint delegation visited the area on October 28, found the enaction of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA)-1967 and other laws unnecessary in this case and poke many holes in the FIR. They claimed that the complaint was prepared even before the incident took place.

“The FIR does not mention the time of the incident but it mentions the time of the filing of the complaint. The complainant named 80 Muslims in the FIR besides 100-200 others as unknown but he mentions names of only three persons from the procession as injured and 50-60 other injured persons as unknown. The FIR has nothing that warrants invocation of UAPA against the accused,” the group said.

In the report, Rihai Manch president Adv. Mohammad Shoaib said, “After a cursory look at the FIR, the incident seems completely doubtful. The complainant has not written the time of the incident, yet FIR says the incident took place at 00:00 clock on 20 Oct and it was registered at 21:38 PM. The local police and communal elements jointly prepared this fake report. FIR names 80 people and 100-200 as unknown which does not seem believable. If 250-300 people had hidden themselves on a village road to attack a Hindu procession, they would have been noticed. Ashish Kumar Shukla names 80 people out of 250-300 but mentions names of only three persons who got injured and forgets 50-60 other injured. The person who does not remember injured members of his own procession, how can he remember 80 names from the other side? This proves that those named as accused in the FIR were already identified and marked by them.”

Rihai Manch stated that this whole incident was concocted to show Muslims as anti-national and terrorists.

The delegation met Bahraich SP and pointed out the wrong use of UAPA in the case. “Initially he insisted that it was correct, but when legal points raised, he promised to look into the case after chargesheet. But the question is that if they remain booked under UAPA, the police will have 180 days for filing the chargesheet, otherwise in normal IPC sections, they will have to file chargesheet within 90 days,” said Rajeev Yadav of Rihai Manch in the report.

The accused have been booked under six IPC sections (147, 148, 295-A, 296, 323, 506) and Section 7 of UAPA.

JICA rules violated to power Bullet Train in India, activists submit memorandum

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October 30, 2018

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Bhumi Adhikar Andolan submitted a Memorandum signed by representatives of 12 major political parties to JICA, to reiterate gross violations in Bullet Train Project. Farmers, Adivasis and other affected communities demanded to scrap the project and detailed the attack on their democratic rights.

New Delhi: While PM Modi has gone on to visit Japan and will be discussing various strategic projects with the Prime Minister of Japan including the controversial Bullet Train project, the farmers, Adivasis and other affected communities of the proposed project reiterated their demands to scrap the project and submitted a memorandum to Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) with the details of gross violations of their guidelines.

The Bullet Train project is an ambitious project for the current government and PM Modi is believed to be taking a personal interest and falsely promoting it as a developmental project for the people of the country. The socio-economic effect of the project has been much debated in public forums by various academicians and activists. The impact will be irreversible for the Indian economy as well as the environment. The farmers are losing land not only in Bullet Train Project but various other highway projects when there is an Indian Railway line already running parallel to the Bullet Train blueprint.

“In the name of infrastructure development, the government is attracting foreign investment. But the question remains, at whose cost are these projects being initiated?”, asked Ulka Mahajan of Sarvahara Jan Andolan. She also articulated the peoples’ frustrations while stating that it’s the common people, the farmers of the country who carry the burden and face the brunt of such “development” projects. She stated that the need of the hour is to remove fear, hunger, poverty and the divisive politics from the country instead of such pointless, so-called, development projects.

The Modi government has diluted the law to acquire land, denying the consent and social impact assessment provisions laid out in the central land acquisition act of 2013. Even after being tagged as a national project, the state laws are being used to subvert the democratic rights of people of Gujarat and Maharashtra state, by using the powers of a majority in Gujarat assembly.

The public consultations could not have been more farcical. In the name of public consultations, officials intentionally put out notifications just 24 hours before the consultations to prevent the people’s voices and critics of the project from expressing their discontent. The people were deliberately classified as authorized and unauthorized for the consultations and were prevented from participating with the use of police forces.

Over 12 major political parties have extended their full support and solidarity with the people of both the States against the project. Earlier, during the Jan Manch in Delhi held this month, political parties termed the project anti-people, anti-farmer, and anti-worker in nature. The project is only facilitating a few rich conglomerates. The need of the hour is to invest in the Indian Railways which actually caters to the larger public, unlike the Bullet Train. When the fundamental infrastructure is not yet in place, a project like this for a small distance is unjustified and is a distortion of the people-centred development.

The government of Japan and JICA must listen to the people of India and stop funding the project to protect the environment and democratic rights of the people. The impact of the said project will be irreversible and the people of India strongly believe that a country like Japan, which has already faced the wrath of nuclear warfare will not want to be remembered for such a destruction.

The memorandum was sent to Shinichi Kitaoka, President, JICA, Junichi Yamada, board member in charge of South Asia and an Indian representative of JICA India, the memorandum has been endorsed by DP Tripathi (Nationalist Congress Party), Danish Ali (Janta Dal- Secular), Somnath Bharti (Aam Aadmi Party), Manishankar Aiyar (Indian National Congress), Nawalkishore (Rashtriya Janta Dal), Javed Ali (Samajwadi Party), Raagesh (Communist Party of India-Marxist), D Raja (Communist Party of India), Raju Shetty (Shetkari Swabhiman Sangathana), VM Singh (Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Sangathan), Prem Singh (Communist Party of India-ML), and Dr Suraj Yadav (Loktantrik Janata Dal).

Copy of the memorandum is attached below

Full text of the memorandum below:

Date: 15-10-2018

To,

1. Shri Shinichi Kitaoka
The President
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
1-6th floor, Nibancho Center Building,
5-25 Niban-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-8012, Japan

2. Junichi Yamada
Board Member, JICA &
Incharge of South Asia Department
1-6th floor, Nibancho Center Building,
5-25 Niban-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-8012, Japan

3. The JICA representative (India)
16th Floor, Hindustan Times House,
18-20, Kasturba Gandhi Marg,
New Delhi – 110001. INDIA

Subject: Bullet Train affected farmers from Maharashtra and Gujarat adopt resolution in presence of representatives from various political parties, Farmers organisations, and other Human rights organizations.

Sirs,

The affected farmers, Adivasis (indigenous people) and other affected persons came together today in Delhi at a Jan Manch (peoples’ forum) jointly organised with Bhoomi Adhikar Andolan (a group of organisations working on land and livelihood rights of people) at Mavlankar Hall, Constitution Club, Rafi Marg, New Delhi.

Political parties viz. – Indian National Congress, Nationalist Congress Party, Samajwadi Party, Janta Dal (Secular), Rashtriya Janata Dal, Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India(M), Communist Party of India (ML), Aam Aadmi Party, Janata Dal (Loktantrik), SUCI, Swabhiman Shetkari Sanghatana, Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Sangathan, were represented by their senior members.

During the Jan Manch affected people presented their concerns and experiences regarding implementation of the Mumbai – Ahmedabad High-Speed Railway project (popularly known as Bullet Train).

The major issues highlighted during the Jan Manch were that the JICA guidelines for Environmental and Social Considerations are being consistently flouted by the project implementers. As per the said Guidelines, JICA is to assure fairness to the socially vulnerable, reduce the gap between the rich and the poor, reduce the gap among various regions, ensure democratic decision making and information transparency and most importantly, respect for human rights. However, all these are being violated as listed below:

1. The acquisition of land for the Project is taking place forcibly and thus by disregarding the Human rights of the affected population. The excessive use of police force at all levels – during consultations, during land measurement surveys, discussions etc. vitiates the atmosphere and puts tremendous pressure on the affected population.

2. In Maharashtra, despite the stated position that land will be obtained only through a process of mutual negotiation and that joint measurement of land will take place only after the affected person assents in writing, in reality, a process of forcible take-over is taking place. In Village Kotbi (Palghar district), Notices for Joint Survey of land were issued to people on 5/10/2018 despite the fact that most of them had not given their consent in writing for the same.

3. The JICA guidelines with respect to Indigenous Peoples are being violated. The JICA guidelines specifically mention that the rights of the Indigenous People in relation to land and resources in accordance with the spirit of the UN Declaration on Rights of Indigenous Peoples shall be respected. Art 10 of the Declaration states that Indigenous People shall not be forcibly removed from their land. Whatever be the reason, no relocation shall take place without the free, prior and informed consent of the Indigenous People concerned. Also, viable Alternatives are to be explored. However, all these safeguards are being violated in the Scheduled Area (predominantly inhabited by indigenous people) through which the Bullet Train passes. India may not be a signatory to the UN Declaration, but for JICA, failing to fulfil the provisions of the UN Declaration is non-negotiable.

4. Environmental and Social Consultations as mandated by the JICA guidelines are carried out in a manner as to ensure that people are unable to participate in an informed manner:

a. The consultations are announced at a very short notice to the concerned stakeholders. The advance notice period has varied from 24 hours (1 day) to a few weeks.

b. There is no coherent approach to the announcement of stakeholder consultations. At times they are announced for district level and sometimes they are conducted at Taluka levels.

c. There is no clarification to the stakeholders invited to the consultation whether they should represent on Social concerns or on Environmental issues. In fact, purposely confusions are created. Different public advertisements are published by NHRSCL at the same venue and same timing, but for a different purpose.

d. In the case of Environmental Consultations, the Supplementary EIA copies are kept for public viewing at different places which are hundreds of kms away at offices of NHRSCL. The nearest place is the District Collector office, which in some cases is about 30 kms away. Even these were not made available during consultations in most districts of Gujarat.

e. Most of the reports are available in the English language, while they should be made available in the local vernacular language for the public to be able to read through and understand, and subsequently participate through an informed representation.

f. Farmers/ affected indigenous population (who are mostly illiterate or semi-literate) are disallowed to raise questions/queries.

g. Environmental activists/experts are deliberately shunned out of the consultation venue with use of police force. This is a violation of basic human rights of the people. And stakeholders are left with no choice to consult or assist during the consultation.

h. Even farmers and local civil society organisations and other social/environment groups are kept out of the process.

i. Elected representatives who can potentially raise uncomfortable queries regarding the project are man-handled and taken away before the start of consultations. The Surat consultation is one such example.

j. The queries raised during the consultations are very casually addressed and there is no written response to the submissions or oral queries raised at the consultations.

k. The minutes of the consultations are yet to be made public. Neither has the video documentation been made public. These are necessary for a transparent process. Letters seeking copies of the minutes are yet to be responded to.

l. In Maharashtra, the consultations on 2/5/2018 and 2/6/2018 in Palghar district were organised but cancelled by the district administration itself due to lack of proper organising and non-availability of necessary information/documents respectively NO consultation has been held subsequently. However, the district administration has sent a report to the concerned authorities that the Public Hearing has been completed. This is a blatant lie and misrepresentation of facts.

m. As if it was not enough the recent announcement for the Stakeholder consultations for districts of Navsari and Valsad (both in the state of Gujarat), went one step further. They published an invitation in local newspapers for the Consultations specifically mentions that ‘unauthorized people would not be allowed at the consultation’. We fail to understand what criteria are prescribed under JICA guidelines to segregate attending stakeholders into authorized and unauthorized categories.

n. From the manner in which the stakeholder consultations are conducted it appears that these are just paper arrangements, with no serious concern to the society and environment seems that in the case of these consultations for the proposed Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail project, Participation, Transparency, Respect for basic Human Rights of people etc. are just words to be bandied around, but not seriously considered.

o. Trampling of basic Human Rights through police force seems to be a part and parcel of the conducting of stakeholder consultations.

p. It should be noted that at several places, due to the apprehensions of affected people arising out of the high-handed and opaque functioning for the consultation, the atmosphere was vitiated and the consultations had to be postponed/rescheduled.

5. JICA’s guidelines also lay down that the intervention must reduce the gap between rich and poor and among various regions. We fail to understand how this is being addressed through this Project. The Bullet train will be accessed by only a minuscule percentage of the entire population. The needs of the poor and the middle class will not be met by the bullet train. In fact, the opportunity cost of the expense incurred on the Bullet Train will impact the availability of funds for social sector spending in the field of health, education etc. The transportation needs of the poor and the middle class will be met if the large outlay on the Bullet Train will be used for the modernization of the present rail system including increasing safety standards and improving facilities. Regional imbalances are not being reduced by the Bullet Train either.

6. The JICA guidelines state that JICA will actively support projects that promote environmental conservation and to projects that contribute to global environment eg. attempts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, the claim that the Bullet train will be “clean and green” has also not been substantiated in the light of “embedded emissions” of CO2 and other pollutants, energy-intensive machinery and construction, per-passenger-Km energy consumption etc.

The Jan Manch today resolved to continue its opposition to the proposed Bullet Train project. All the attending political parties who came to show their support and solidarity with farmers, indigenous people and other project affected people have endorsed their support to the affected population.

We request a personal hearing from the JICA team at the earliest.

Thanking you,

Yours faithfully,

Endorsed by:
D P Tripathi, Nationalist Congress Party
Danish Ali, Janta Dal (Secular)
Somnath Bharti, Aam Aadmi Party
Manishankar Aiyar, Indian National Congress
Nawalkishore, Rashtriya Janta Dal
Javed Ali, Samajwadi Party
Raagesh, Communist Party of India (Marxist)
D. Raja, Communist Party of India
Raju Shetty, Shetkari Swabhiman Sangathana
V. M. Singh, Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Sangathan
Prem Singh, Communist Party of India (Marxist Leninist)
Dr. Suraj Yadav, Loktantrik Janata Dal

This report has been written on the basis of a press release and memorandum submitted by the Bhumi Adhikar Andolan.

Read Also:
https://sabrangindia.in/article/bullet-train-or-bullet-environment
https://sabrangindia.in/article/activists-call-probe-illegal-detention-related-bullet-train-project
https://sabrangindia.in/article/japanese-investors-guidelines-violated-bullet-train-project

Statue Of Unity: The World’s Tallest But Here’s What It Could Have Paid For

US political candidate Padma Kuppa endorses Hindutva agenda of supremacy

The Sabarimala Verdict: Whose Morality, Whose Freedom?

The Tall Price That Gujarat’s Tribals Are Paying for the ‘Tallest’ Statue

Their land gone and facing displacement, tribals in some villages are busy salvaging ready crops after water was released from the dam to beautify the backdrop of the Rs 3,000 crore ‘Statue of Unity’ for VIP eyes.

The Heavy Price That Tribals Paid for ‘Statue of Unity’

An Open Letter to Sardar Patel: Medha Patkar

As mass displacement accompanies the unveiling of Sardar Patel’s Unity statue in Gujarat, Medha Patkar writes this letter in anguish to Patel: about the callousness of this government in displacing Adivasi villages and tribals

Azeem’s Death Result of Scuffle between Groups of Boys: Police

UP Police arbitrarily books 80 Muslims under UAPA

Human rights groups Rihai Manch and NCHRO delegation visited the area where a communal clash took place and found the enaction of UAPA unnecessary. They claimed that the complaint was prepared even before the incident took place.

JICA rules violated to power Bullet Train in India, activists submit memorandum

Bhumi Adhikar Andolan submitted a Memorandum signed by representatives of 12 major political parties to JICA, to reiterate gross violations in Bullet Train Project. Farmers, Adivasis and other affected communities demanded to scrap the project and detailed the attack on their democratic rights.

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