In an appeal issued on June 19, 2024, as the Narmada Satyagraha and indefinite fast by social activist Medha Patkar enters its fifth day, hundreds of concerned citizens, activists, academics, environmentalists, film makers, former bureaucrats, feminists, youth activists and people’s organizations from across India wrote to the Narmada Control Authority and other authorities, calling upon them to address the legitimate demands of the movement.

They have appealed for immediate and complete rehabilitation of all affected families and maintaining Sardar Sarovar reservoir level at 122 mts, until such time.

Highlighting the historic role of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) over the past four decades, the petition also pointed out some important current issues; including the pending rehabilitation of a few thousand families, the particularly vulnerable situation of Dalit, Adivasi, fisher folk oustees; the need to rescind the fraudulently revised back water levels, the lack of effective regulation and monitoring of the cascade of reservoirs on Narmada, leading to massive crop, house and livestock losses in 2023, flooding even in downstream areas and need to compensate the same.

Some of the signatories to the petition from across India include: Dr. EAS Sarma, Anand Patwardhan, Prof. Rama Melkote Prafulla Samantara, Ashish Kothari, Prof. Anil Sadgopal, Dr. Rosemary Dzuvichu, Sharad Behar, Kavitha Kuruganti, Fr. Cedric Prakash, Dr. Roop Rekha Verma, Teesta Setalvad, Adv Clifton D’ Rozario, Zahid Parwaz Choudhary, Dr. Sudhir Vombatkere, Madhuri, Neelam Ahluwalia, Adv Shalini Gera, C.R Neelakandan, Hasina Khan, Tushar Gandhi, Nityanand Jayaraman, Adv Indira Unninayar, Richa Singh, Rohit Prajapati, Sukla Sen, Himanshu Thakkar, Mahendra Yadav, Dr. Gabriele Dietrich, Adv Vinay Sreenivasa, Purnima Upadhyay, Mohammad Ishak Van Gujjar, Kailash Meena, Nabinder Singh, Simin Akhter, Usmangani, Dr. Sunilam, Malika Virdi, Madhu Badhuri , Pavan Muntha and many others.

The signatories endorsed the key demands of the movement and called upon authorities to:

• Ensure complete and immediate rehabilitation for all those affected by the Sardar Sarovar Project, as per law and judicial orders.
• Compensate all damages inflicted until 2023, with immediate effect.
• Cancel revised backwater levels;
• Resettle 15,946 families according to old levels.
• Fairly resolve all the pending applications before GRAs and appointments to the Grievance Redressal Authorities (GRAs).
• Maintain the water level of Sardar Sarovar at 122 meters, until all affected are rehabilitated, as per law and directives of the Apex Court.

The signatories have called upon the government not to resort to any form of high-handedness or repression on the movement and uphold the legal, human and constitutional rights of people.

The petition which was addressed to the Chairperson of Narmada Control Authority, was also sent to the Prime Minister of India, Union Minister of Jal Shakti, Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment, Chief Ministers of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat and Chairperson, Narmada Valley Development Authority, with a request to ensure due compliance with law and people’s demands.

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“Medha Patkar has committed an offence punishable under Section 500 of the IPC. She is hereby convicted of the same,” the court said while pronouncing the conviction.

The matter will now be heard for arguments on sentence on May 30. Notably, for a conviction of criminal defamation, the Narmada Bachao Andolan leader may get a jail term of two years or fine or both as the punishment under the relevant law.

Details of the case:

As per multiple media reports, Patkar and Saxena have been locked in a legal battle since 2000 after she filed a suit against him for publishing advertisements against her and the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA).

Saxena was then the chief of Ahmedabad-based NGO National Council for Civil Liberties. Saxena had also filed two cases against her for making derogatory remarks against him on a TV channel and issuing a defamatory statement.

As per LiveLaw’s report, Saxena had filed the present case in 2001 against Patkar for defaming him in a press note dated November 25, 2000, titled “true face of patriot.” In the press note, Patkar had reportedly said Saxena was a coward and not a patriot.

Observations of the Court:

As per a report of India Today, the magistrate court stated that Patkar’s statements against Saxena were “not only defamatory but also crafted to incite negative perceptions”. The Court had further held that Patkar’s actions were deliberate and malicious, aimed at tarnishing Saxena’s good name and have caused substantial harm to his standing and credit.

During the delivery of the conviction, the Magistrate court further held that “It has been proved beyond reasonable doubt that the accused Medha Patkar published the imputations with the intent and knowledge that they would harm the reputation of the complainant.”

The judge also concluded that Patkar’s decision to label the complainant as a “coward” and “not a patriot” was a direct attack on his personal character and loyalty to the nation. Furthermore, the court noted that Patkar’s accusation that Saxena was “mortgaging the people of Gujarat and their resources to foreign interests was a direct attack on his integrity and public service”.

The court went on to hold that the statements made by Patkar were defamatory as it questioned his patriotism and stated “It has been demonstrated that the defamatory statements made by the accused not only questioned his integrity and patriotism but also falsely associated him with activities contrary to his public stance.”

Referencing to the lack of evidence provided by Patkar to counter the charged levied against her, the court observed that “The accused failed to provide any evidence to counter these claims or to show that she did not intend or foresee the harm these imputations would cause.”

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The interim order said that the review, which must include issues related with the rehabilitation of dam-affected people, should be carried out in accordance with the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal (NWDT) award, which has the provision to set up a committee of chief ministers of the lateral states, with Union water resources minister as chairman. The committee has the power to look into any dispute that may arise on water sharing, rehabilitation of the oustees, and other related issues.

The next hearing of the petition filed by dam oustees, supported by the anti-dam organisation Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), has been fixed for September 26, in which three state governments — Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra — and the Government of India have been asked to remain present and put up their case.

The interim order was passed by a bench consisting of Justices NV Ramana and Ajay Rastogi. Senior advocate Sanjay Parikh appeared in the court on behalf of the oustees.

Related Articles:
Narmada valley: SC notice to Gujarat, MP, M’rashtra on submergence sans rehabilitation
Day 6 of Medha Patkar’s fast against Submergence, is Govt listening?
https://www.sabrang.com/news/2005/narmadaverdict.pdf

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Kamal Nath

NBA note:

Amidst the chaos of illegal submergence in Narmada Valley, the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) has written a letter to the Madhya Pradesh government demanding concrete action for the protection of the rights of the affected people in the state.

It is worth mentioning that while appealing to Medha Patkar and other affected people to end their hunger strike, the state government had accepted that thousands of families are yet to be rehabilitated in the submergence area and that they are against the full filling of the Sardar Sarovar dam.

But recently, the steps taken by additional chief secretary and deputy chairman of the Narmada Valley Development Authority (NVDA) Gopal Reddy and chief minister Kamal Nath in their letters written to the Central government are not in accordance with these assurances. That is why the movement has written a letter to the government, in the name of Gopal Reddy, today.

The state government should stop using false data. The letter states that in the meeting held on August 24, 2019 with the Madhya Pradesh chief secretary, the NBA had emphasized that the present government has also continued to use false figures of the previous government.
It is worth mentioning that in its letter dated May 27, 2019 sent by the government’s own Narmada Control Authority (NCA), only 6,000 families from 76 villages in Dhar district were claimed to be affected. 
 

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MP chief minister, Kamal Nath issued the following statement regarding the Sardar Sarovar Project yesterday:

1. Sardar Sarovar is an inter-state project, with Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Gujarat as the party states. Therefore, decisions cannot be taken by any one state alone. Rehabilitation processes are being implemented according to the decisions of the Narmada Water Dispute Tribunal (NWDT) award, state’s rehabilitation policy and the orders of the Supreme Court. Disputes related to the rehabilitation are being settled via the Grievance Redressal Authority constituted with 5 retired judges of the High Court. Madhya Pradesh government is committed to the protection of the rights of displaced people. 

2. Being a welfare state, continuous dialogue process has been maintained by the senior politicians and bureaucrats, including myself, with the displaced people and the Narmada Bachao Andolan, in order to ensure that the issues faced by the displaced people are understood thoroughly and addressed meaningfully. In order to ensure the participation of the displaced people in the rehabilitation works, the current government has constituted village as well as district level Rehabilitation Committees in the villages of the submergence area. People’s representatives, social workers as well as the displaced people are being included in these committees.

3. The current government has given necessary orders to the District Collectors to review the cases of families that were earlier declared to be ineligible, towards providing them with adequate compensation. The current government has declared 115 new families to be eligible for the compensation of rupees 60 lakhs. We have not yet received the necessary amount from the Gujarat government, even after submitting applications towards the same.

4. In the monsoon season of 2019, the current government undertook mass scale flood prevention and relief measures. Village level committees were constituted and rescue boats, food and temporary shelters were provided to the people for evacuation from the submergence zone.

5. The decision as well as implementation of the filling of the Sardar Sarovar Dam’s reservoir is undertaken by the Narmada Control Authority (NCA). However, NCA has not been functioning in an impartial manner. The Madhya Pradesh government is opposing the filling of the reservoir this year, towards which the Chief Secretary had requested the NCA on 27/5/19 to call for a meeting for reconsidering the decision of filling the reservoir. However, this request was not taken seriously. The meeting that was called for 21/8/19 was cancelled on 20/8/19. The Additional Chief Secretary of the Narmada Valley Development Region met the Chairperson of the Narmada Control Authority in New Delhi to request them to not proceed with filling the dam reservoir.

6. Upon the request of the Gujarat government, a meeting of the Sardar Sarovar Reservoir Regulation Committee was called on August 16, 2019, in which the Gujarat government sought approval for filling the reservoir at the rate of 30 centimetres per day. However, this demand was not accepted due to the fervent opposition to the same by the Madhya Pradesh government, to look after the interests of its people.

7. I want to assure Medha Patkar Ji and all her associates in the Narmada Bachao Andolan that my government is fully committed to the complete rehabilitation of the affected families. Redressal of the demands as well as grievances of the affected families will be undertaken by setting up camps in each village. I sincerely request Medha Patkar Ji to call off her fast and cooperate with us for the immediate redressal of the issues of the affected families.

8. The Madhya Pradesh government will sincerely endeavour to keep to the gates of the dam open and strive for a stay on the decision to fill the reservoir completely.

(Translation from Hindi by Abha Jeurkar)

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Medha Patkar with supporters on the bank of Narmada

Seeking signatures from supporters, the petition, which has been released a day after Parkar rejected Kamal Nath’s offer to quit hunger strike, insists, “Until the rehabilitation is complete, the water level of Sardar Sarovar should remain till 122 meters. In the Narmada valley, Medha Patkar and 24 other women from the affected villages continue to remain on an indefinite fast.”
 

Kamal Nath

Thousands of families in Madhya Pradesh have not yet been fully rehabilitated, as residents at the rehabilitation site have not been granted adequate access to facilities as per their legal rights. In this context, the displaced people are made to witness their farms and livelihoods being submerged under the water. In this situation, we are confident that the Government of Madhya Pradesh will stand on the side of the people.
 

According to the letter sent by the Chief Secretary of the state of Madhya Pradesh to the Narmada Control Authority (NCA), dated May 27, 2019, a total of 6,000 families from 76 villages are residing in the submergence area. 8,500 applications, 2,952 for farmlands and others for the eligibility of compensation of rupees 60 lakh, are still pending.

According to the Narmada Bachao Andolan, not just 6,000 people from the 76 villages, but many more families (approximately 32,000 families) are affected. Can the shopkeepers, small business people, artisans, potters, boat people allow the destruction of their villages, in the absence of access to rightful alternate livelihoods?
 

A temporary rehab centre in MP

There is very slow progress on these issues. Today, it is important to follow the right procedures, as the last 15 years have seen a lot of corruption, lies and confusion. Unfortunately, the corrupt activities have still not been arrested. Since the previous government, assurances given to withdraw the petitions filed in the High Court and Supreme Court have not yet been fulfilled.
 

Therefore, Madhya Pradesh must see to it that the water level in the Sardar Sarovar does not rise above 122 meters. We seek your support for Narmada Bachao Andolan towards this goal. 
 

You and your party have supported the displaced people by not only providing assurances in your election manifesto, but also by standing directly with them. In 1996 as well as in 1978 Narmada Bachao Andolan, all party agreement had been reached on this issue.

After 34 years of non-violent struggle, Medha Patkar Ji and 24 other women from the affected areas have been forced to sit on an indefinite fast.

According to the Narmada Water Dispute Tribunal and the orders of the Supreme Court, ensuring complete rehabilitation of the people in the submergence area is their right as well as the legal responsibility of the state.

We, therefore, expect that your government takes sensitive, just and immediate action on a war footing.

Courtesy: Counter View

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Water levels are dangerously rising in the Narmada valley. And a feisty band of protesters stick it out, protesting, in the face of danger of rising waters and disease. Day before yesterday, on Wednesday, August 28, when water levels rose to an unprecedented 134 metres, the most appalling was the reaction of the prime minister, who called this alarming development as “historic”. Modi issued an invitation to people to visit the statue of unity. The dam authorities have said that this was the highest water level after the height of the dam was raised to 138 metres in 2017.

“The government has brought in beggars to some sites and claims that people have been resettled, while people are forced to stay in small islands as water fills up. Since the water is stagnant, it has become dirty. If one stays for some time in the water, it starts to itch. There is no groundwater and people are using this dirty water even to drink. There is no electricity and one has to travel by boats if one can get hold of one,” NAPM activist Bilal Khan told SabrangIndia.

Leading activist, Medha Patkar and ten other affected persons are sitting on an indefinite strike supported by thousands of villagers and have appealed for global solidarity.

Anticipating submergence of as many as two lakh people, the thirty year old resistance movement in the region, Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) has started a “Global Solidarity Petition to Narmada” and its longest veteran leader and former member of the World Commission on Dams, Medha Patkar along with women leaders from the region have entered the sixth day of their indefinite hunger strike. They have called upon the government of India and Gujarat to “immediately halt this colossal calamity of wiping away two lakh people, as if they were ‘dispensable insects’”.

Rohit Singh, an activist from the region said, “Medha Tai’s heath is deteriorating but she won’t break her strike. Waters have already impacted villages. 400 villages in Nisarpur, 50 villages in Chikalda and 100 villages in Rajghat have already submerged in water. As many as 60 -70 villages have been impacted. If the water level rises to 138 metres all the villages will get submerged.” Rohit also added that the livelihood of the people in the region has been completely disrupted and small shops have closed.

As many as 192 villages in Madhya Pradesh, 33 in Maharashtra and 19 in Gujarat fall under the submergence zone.

This year, the Narmada Control Authority decided to fill its reservoir to its full capacity reportedly to “test the water pressure on the dam.” As per its predictions, the water level was supposed to reach 134 metres by August 3, and 138.6 metres by October 8. However, the water has already reached the 134 metres mark.

Earlier, activists from the long standing Narmada movement had predicted that if the water level keeps increasing at this alarming speed, as many as 32,000 families stand at the risk of facing a “water calamity”.

How did we reach here?
Reportedly, the managing director of the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Limited (SSNNL), Rajiv Gupta said earlier that it was “essential to test the dam at Full Reservoir Level (FRL)” as this had not been done since the gates were installed in 2017.” He had also said that the state government will adhere to the norms laid down in the dam safety manual while filling the dam to FRL in the next 50 days.” Notably, in his own words dam hasn’t been “tested at FRL because of deficient rainfall in earlier years.” However, past experience suggests that authorities are usually ill prepared to handle any disasters which may come in the way, especially a flood like situation.

Moreover, activists have also alleged that any reports that people have been evacuated or sent to safe places, are “complete and utter lies.” They have said that since the time strike started, no government officials have come and met the people at the dam site and that there has been a complete apathy and callous indifference from the government’s side.

Past experiences with dams and floods
An analytical report published by the environmental magazine Down To Earth in 2015 had pointed out that one problem faced by dam operators is that “filling the reservoir early in the monsoon may result in excess discharge and floods later on”. In 2015, in the case of Hirakud dam on the river Mahanadi, a large quantum release from its reservoir displaced as many as two million people in 20 of state’s 30 districts.

The report had also highlighted activists’ concerns that the operators sitting in hot spot are often slow in reacting to information on inflow of water and rainfall in the catchment. It also noted the “typical” response by authorities, “there was a sudden influx of water due to incessant rains in the catchment; there is no way to avert these disasters”.

A disregard for foretold destruction
Despite all past experiences and a strong demand from the people to keep the water level at 122 metres, the authorities, with the support of the Central government, have gone ahead and are letting the water level rise at a speed that is certain to impact the lakhs of people settled here along with their cattle and livelihood.

The dam impacts three states namely Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Activists allege that because of the apathy of Gujarat government, even the MP and Maharashtra governments are not doing anything. Recently, the Chief of Secretary of Madhya Pradesh had written to the Narmada Control Authority (NCA), in which they predicted that a total of 6,000 families from 76 villages are residing in the submergence area. Up to 8,500 applications, of which up to 2,952 are for farmlands and other entitlements for compensation of Rs. 60 lakhs, as directed by the Apex Court are still pending, as per the letter.

However, the NBA estimates that there are as many as 32,000 families or even more which are awaiting entitlements including alternative land/ compensation for land acquired from Adivasis and farmers, house plots, a range of amenities at the resettlement sites, rehabilitation grants and livelihoods especially for the multitudes of Dalits and landless workers, fisher people, potters, boats people, small traders and artisans.

The people’s movement also alleges that a massive scam of more than Rs. 1000 crores in the rehabilitation process is “being ignored to shield the mighty and powerful while the people on the ground bear the brunt of it!”A high level judicial commission had indicted the government for grave violations earlier.

“It is indeed a cruel and unjustifiable irony that despite a robust legal framework that exists with the Narmada Water Dispute Tribunal Award, 1979 and the multiple judgements of the Supreme Court, especially that of 2000 & 2005 to ensure complete rehabilitation of the residents of the submergence area before impoundment of reservoir, even the minimal rehabilitation that has happened so far has been only after protracted and relentless struggle”, the activists lament.

The MP government wrote to the Centre to reconsider the decision of filling up the dam to its full capacity. However, the activists allege, the Union Government, prompted by Gujarat appears to be unrelenting and keen on permanently inundating the valley within a few weeks.

The land that stands the risk of submergence is located within the fifth schedule area, and is constitutionally protected and the President of India is under a mandate to safeguard it.

Meanwhile, the PM has termed the news as “thrilling” and said, “Sharing some breathtaking view, with the hope that you will go visit the iconic place and see the ‘Statue of Unity’”.

The global solidarity petition can be signed here:

Key demands in the petition are:
a) Direct the Narmada Control Authority to maintain the water level in the SSP reservoir at 122 metres.
b) Halt the hasty decision to close the dam gates until complete, lawful and fair rehabilitation of all the 32,000 families is ensured.
c) Provide interim relief to the thousands of families already affected by the inundation.
d) Constitute an independent high-powered committee to assess the scale and status of compliance on rehabilitation and environmental measures, before proceeding further with the dam work, in terms of the judgement of the Apex Court of Oct, 2000.

Related Articles:

1. Gujarat pushing towards flooding: Sardar Sarovar Dam levels rise
2. Gujarat government opens 25 gates of Sardar Sarovar Dam, Victory for 34 year old Struggle
3. Mass Protests at Narmada valley commemorate a Historic Struggle

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On July 31, thousands of people- farmers, labourers, women, gathered together at Badwani, near the river Narmada to strengthen their resolve to carry on their struggle and prevent the destruction of their natural resources. The Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) held a large gathering at Badwani (Madhya Pradesh) to mark the failure of the state to adequately rehabilitate 30,000 families even 34 yearsafter the construction of Narmada dam began. Worse, thousands of houses, shops, temples and mosques in the Narmada valley still face the danger of being submerged.

In what has become an annual event, several social organizations, researchers, artists, journalists, representatives of the displaced people and activists participated in the gathering on July 31 to “resolve to continue fighting for people’s rights”. Through a statement, issued on the occasion, the NBA said, “Villages cannot be vacated by force. Without rehabilitation, forcible displacement would be against law as also against various decisions of courts and constitutional values.” 

Submerging 192 villages and one township before the fair and just rehabilitation would be “unjust”, the NBA said, adding that the state of Madhya Pradesh was lawfully bound to provide forest dwellers with land entitlements in accordance with the Forest Rights Act, 2006 while farmers’ land could only be acquired by applying the land acquisition Act, 2013.

The gathering of a few thousand was led by women. This protest assembly resolved that though there are as many as 32000 families in the area that face submergence due to the 139 metre level water in Sardar Sarovar, they would struggle and protest to ensure that neither nature nor their culture would be destroyed. Not only is the state of Madhya Pradesh shirking from its legal commitments, but neighbouring Gujarat is not even supplying electricity to the area.

The statement also noted, “Those displaced because of Bargi, Maheshwar, Jobat dams, have still not been rehabilitated and their livelihoods not been restored.” Other activists highlighted that false promises of the government have been exposed.

Gujarat’s former environment minister Praveen Singh Jadeja apologised to the people on behalf of the state of Gujarat and said that those of us [in the government], who have been asking for water in the name of Gujarat’s Kachchh and Saurahstra and supported Sardar Sarovar dam have been proved wrong. Issues and concerns raised by the Narmada Bachao Andolan have proved to be true. He added, “Gujarat and Central governments are neither in the favour of those displaced nor the farmers.”

The impact of the widespread struggle had compelled even an an institution like the World Bank had to bow down to the people. World Bank has reportedly said that if it gives its money to any company, then it will have to go by the law prevailing in the country. After the victory of the Narmada struggle in 1993, this was another big achievement of the struggle.

Participants also highlighted the fact that even a country like America had to break down more than 1000 dams and open up rivers when faced with mass protests. The struggle at the site of the Narmada river has drawn support from likeminded struggles in Brazil. It has been decades of a hard won respect that has been accompanied by making a dent in the discourse around big dams.

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Keynote presentation by independent researcher Nandini Oza*, “Learnings from Oral Histories of Narmada Struggle: Questioning Existing Notions of Nation, National Interest and Development”, at the Fourth Annual Conference – Oral History Association of India at the Ambedkar University, Delhi,  on February 1, 2019:

The NWDT gave its award in 1979 which saw a powerful struggle in M.P. called the Nimad Bachao Andolan demanding height reduction of the SSP. This struggle though fierce was short lived. Then there was the Narmada Ghati Navnirman Samiti in M.P. lead by veteran Gandhians  and local leaders that had begun questioning the large dams on the Narmada in M.P. People in Gujarat and Maharashtra had also begun raising issues concerning displacement and rehabilitation in the early eighties. It was also in the early eighties that members of Kalpavriksh and the Hindu College Nature Club had undertaken a study of the impacts of large dams in the Narmada Valley.

However it was only in the mid-eighties, a more organised, coordinated and systematic organisation of the people of the affected villages came into being and this organisation spread across the to be submergence and affected villages in the three party states. Organizations like SETU, Arch Vahini, MARG, Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangathan played different, important and catalyst role in different states during this period in the Narmada valley and in the formation of people’s organisations. Finally, the united organisation of the SSP affected people of the three states and their struggle subsequently came to be popularly known as the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) which has been going on for over three decades now.

The NBA, essentially a people’s struggle, delayed the completion of the dam by over two decades and has also spread to the other large dams being built on the river Narmada as part of Narmada Valley Development Plan (NVDP). However the primary struggle has been against the SSP in Gujarat.  The NBA has sustained for so long and has been so powerful essentially because the SSP alone is to submerge 245 villages with a population of two hundred and fifty thousand people, many of who are tribal, farmers and natural resource dependent communities.

Another two hundred and fifty thousand people are to be adversely impacted and many of them even displaced due to the project infrastructure like the canals, project colony, etc. Thus the SSP alone is to displace and or impact five hundred thousand people.  If all the other dams on the river Narmada are taken together then over a million people are to be displaced or lose their livelihood.

The submergence area. Photo: Rohit Jain

Struggle against the SSP

Initially the people’s organisation raised issues concerning displacement and rehabilitation:
 

1. How many people are to be displaced?
2. Where will the people be rehabilitated?
3. Where is the Rehabilitation Master Plan?
4. Where is the land for resettlement?
5. Is it possible to resettle so many people?
6. What about those people who are going to be affected by the project but are not entitled to rehabilitation?

As no answers were forthcoming and as the NBA grew stronger, people began asking other fundamental questions such as:
 

1. Have the environment impact assessment studies been done? What about impacts on Flora, Fauna, Fisheries, impacts in the Downstream of the Dam, Seismicity, Command Area Development and Catchment Area Development plans, what about the Carrying Capacity and Health impacts?
2. What is the financial cost of the SSP? Has there been a cost benefit       analysis of the project?
3. Who is to benefit and at whose cost?
4. Is this dam really development?
5. Most importantly, people began asking- is there an alternate development model based on the principles of sustainability, equity, and justice?

However there were no satisfactory answers forth coming from the government, developers and the planners. The NBA raised these issues in various forums both before the government as well as at public places.  Ultimately it was only after 3 years of consistent effort by the people to get responses in vain that in 1987, the NBA demanded halting the work on the project for a participatory and time bound review of the project.

The demand for a time bound review was reasonable as the work on the SSP was at a preliminary stage.  The general response of the state and planners to this demand by the NBA was standard:
 

• Big dams are development.
• This dam is being built in National interest.
• SSP will provide irrigation and electricity.
•  

Any opposition to it or even raising questions regarding SSP began to be slowly called anti development and even anti-national and NBA often was met with repression.  Naturally the resistance of the people became increasingly powerful as more facts and information concerning SSP began coming in. The people of the Narmada valley then began questioning the very dominant development model that the SSP represented. People challenged the project where essentially the resources of the marginalised communities were being transferred to the economically and politically powerful communities in the name of development without even fair and proper rehabilitation of the affected communities.

The early resistance. Photo: Shripad Dharmadhikary

As the state increasingly dismissed the NBA as an irritant and began using force against its people often, the NBA carried out powerful programs and protests actions not only within the Narmada Valley but even outside across the country. The movement even opposed the powerful international financial institutions like the World Bank which had pushed the SSP even before the Ministry of Environment; Government of India had given environmental clearance to the project.

As the struggle grew, the NBA was successful in drawing attention of people both within the country and outside to the issues of human rights, environment protection, sustainable development based on principles of equity and justice. NBA voiced the need of people’s consent and participation in development planning and projects. Due to the powerful resistance, it was also for the first time in the history of the World Bank that it had to withdraw from a project it was funding.

Mass Program of the NBA. Photo: Shripad Dharmadhikary

It was because of the struggles like the NBA that hundreds of organisations the world over called for a moratorium on large dams being funded by the World Bank. Specially recognising the role of the NBA, this call was named Manibeli Declaration after the extraordinary struggle of the village Manibeli on the banks of the Narmada. Movements like the NBA are considered important as these struggles have brought about important changes in development discourse and development planning in India. It is movements like the NBA that have:
 

• Helped bring about changes in policies and laws such as the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act 2013, The Forest Rights Act 2006, The Right to Information Act 2005, etc.
• Helped bring changes in Structures and Institutions for Regulation and Governance such as formation of the World Bank Inspection Panel, more power to the gram sabhas in decision making, etc.
• Helped in changing the discourse and notions of key issues of Nation, National Interest, and Development.

Recognizing the contribution of the NBA in the development discourse of the country, Professor Shiv Vishwanathan has the following to say:

“…To me, the most important historical event of the last two decades has been the battle over the Narmada dam. The battle over the Narmada dam reflects a journey, a pilgrimage, and a recollection of 30 years of resistance. It demands a different kind of storytelling. This struggle is about a collective history of a people challenging the official history of a nation state…” (29 March 2016, The Hindu).

As Professor Vishwanathan points out, like the dominant development paradigm, there is also a dominant history of a Nation State where people’s history and voices are absent. It is the dominant history of a Nation and Development which is written, promoted and taught. People’s struggles like the NBA at the most find a cursory reference in the dominant or the main stream history, if at all. Even where there is an attempt by researches and academics to study people’s history, the people are mere respondents, subjects and or sample to be studied. The people creating history have very little place in writing this history. Even if there is an attempt to write the history of a struggle, it is often that it is only the issues the movement has raised or the prominent events of the movement or the prominent faces that find a place.

The extraordinary role, life and struggle of the people and communities do not find a significant place in this history. This vacuum and lacuna is present also when a movement writes its own history where it is often that the focus is on the prominent leaders. That people too need to have a legitimate place in the development history of a nation is also felt by the people of powerful struggles. This has been expressed clearly by senior tribal leaders of the movement like the NBA as follows:

Kevalsingh Vasave. Photo: Nandini Oza

“The twenty two years’ of struggle of the Narmada has not been written anywhere. Whatever has been written is about the issues the movement has raised like environment impacts, cost benefit analysis of the project, displacement and rehabilitation. There is no history of how the people have fought. Such a history is not available anywhere. I feel such a history should be written by meeting the people of every village who have participated in this struggle” (Kevalsingh Vasave, Oral History Interview by the Author, August 2006).

Considering the absence of the voices of people and victims of development in the main stream history of a Nation; oral history becomes an important medium that helps to bring to fore the voices of the people who have played an important role in the development discourse. It is such oral histories that help us understand the changing notions of Nation, National Interest and Development Discourse.

It also helps us understand sustainable development models based on principles of equity and justice. Although oral history like any other history has its limitations, it is particularly an important medium to understand the history of the marginalised communities who are mostly absent from the pages of mainstream history.

Keeping this in mind, I began recording the oral histories of prominent leaders of the NBA both local and from outside the Narmada valley, of men and women belonging to tribal, farming and other resource based communities.  Over a period of 10 years, I recorded in digital format eighty interviews of senior members of the NBA in 7 different languages and dialects.

Some of these interviews have been taken over a period of 5 to 10 years. For example some interviews of the local tribal leaders of the NBA have been taken soon after their displacement and after a gap of many years after their displacement. This has helped get a better idea of the changing life of the people over the years as a result of development induced displacement. For having been an activist of the NBA and having worked and lived with the people for a decade and a half, I have had an added advantage of the trust and faith of the people interviewed for such an oral history collection.

The oral histories so collected has helped understand the powerful people’s resistance to SSP, resistance to dominant notions of development in the context of communities, traditions, religion, environment, heritage, etc. The oral histories so collected reveal many insights and I present a few here.

The dominant development model in the country follows the notion that large dams are development. While dedicating the Bhakra dam to the nation on 22 Oct 1963, Jawaharlal Nehru said:

“Bhakra Nangal Project is something tremendous, something which shakes you up when you see it. Bhakra, the new temple of resurgent India, is the symbol of India’s progress”.

This statement was made by Pandit Nehru although there already had been a powerful people’s struggle in the 1920s against a dam being built by the Tata Company popularly known as the Mulshi Satyagraha. This powerful struggle led by leaders like Senapati Bapat and Vinayakrao Bhuskute, had seen participation of women who too had been jailed and beaten at that time. The Mulshi Satyagraha was ignored back then in the development discourse as foundation stone of one dam after the other was laid after India’s independence.

Even today, it finds no place of significance in the mainstream history of the nation. The mainstream history and development studies continue to reinforce what Pandit Nehru said about dams as being the temples of modern India. The many subsequent people’s struggles across the country against large dams such as the struggle against Ichampalli, Koel-Karo, Silent Valley, Lalpur, Dantiwada-Sipu, Tehri and other dams too do not find a place of significance in the dominant discourse of Nation and National interest. Therefore dams continue to be built with impunity and even the recent climate change discourse pushes large dams as clean and green source of energy.

Against this backdrop, the voice of the people in the anti dam struggles like the NBA has something different to say about dams and rivers. If the people to be displaced in large numbers are to be heard, they throw a different dimension to dams that challenge the dominant discourse of development altogether. Santaben Yadav, who represents thousands of women in the Narmada valley, says the following about the Narmada dam (SSP) and rivers in general:

Shantaben Yadav. Photo: Nandini Oza

“…There is only one thing in my mind, our culture will be destroyed, and our generation next will be ruined. If at all a dam is built on the River Narmada, if the Sardar Sarovar dam will be built, it is a destructive dam. It is not as if our lands or our environment or the Narmada valley will be saved. There will be no sign of our entire (Narmada) valley. Environment is getting destroyed.  There will be no trace of the whole valley. Where ever you see there are dams. Here there is the Maheshwar dam and there it is the Omkareshwar dam. The Government is bent upon destroying the whole Narmada. Is this the way a country develops? Let the rivers flow freely, Rivers are free; Rivers are a gift of nature. On one hand they say stop cutting forest but on the other side they have destroyed the entire forest – the entire Shulpaneshwar forest. It is these city people who use their brains and say build a dam here and one there! All decisions are taken in Delhi and Mumbai. It is not good to play with nature. We have said we shall not move, stop the dams and let all rivers flow” (Shantaben Yadav, Village Pipri, M.P. Oral History Interview by the Author, 2006).

Thus, while for Pandit Nehru a dam was a temple and building of a dam symbol of India’s progress, for Shantaben who represents the people of the Narmada valley, dams are destruction. For the people it is the river which is divine, a living entity and a free flowing river symbolizes progress. It is because of people’s voices that today, increasingly maintaining minimum flow in rivers has become important in planning river basin development.  The other important question that Shantaben asks is: Who decides what is development? Are all decisions to be taken by people sitting in Mumbai and Delhi? Do people living on the banks of such rivers have right to participate in the decision making and development planning process as part of this nation?

Oral histories of people’s struggles like the NBA help to understand these conflicts in building of a nation and development. It helps us understand the two different ideologies concerning development where on one side are the planners and technocrats and on the other natural resource based communities, tribals and farmers. Oral histories also help us understand that in this conflict it is the dominant ideology that prevails often as the state has the power, resources and the force. The people’s resistance to such dams is termed anti-development and even anti national and affected people seeking their rights are often ruthlessly displaced through submergence or eviction through force. Often people are also evicted without proper rehabilitation.

It is here that oral histories of the Narmada struggle also give us an insight as to how displacement and rehabilitation of victims of development are seen in a narrow sense by the development planners.  For example, development planners initially started with the premise that those who are to be displaced by such projects:
 

• Have to sacrifice for the nation building.
• It was believed that anything and everything can be compensated by paying cash to the affected people.
• It was only as people’s struggles against development induced displacement intensified across the country that finally, as late as 2013; the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act was passed.
•  

However for the affected communities, it is not about compensation and rehabilitation alone. When the voices of people to be impacted by such projects are heard it is clear that this is about:
 

• People’s participation in development planning.
• It is about right to know.
• It is about consent of the people.
• It is about the value of a river that cannot be measured in cash.
• It is about putting value to the forests, flora, fauna, fish, grazing lands, herbs, sacred sites, etc that again cannot be measured in cash.
• It is about the value of social capital and all that is not tangible; the culture, heritage, traditions, community living and the languages of the people.
• It is about a different model of development based on the principles of equity and justice
• It is about a different world view and lifestyle of the people to be impacted by such projects not consider as development.
•  

This premise can be clearly understood from what a senior tribal leader of the NBA, Bawa Mahariya of the submergence village Jalsindhi, M.P. has to say in his letter to the then Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh in June 1999 (Frontline):

Bawa Mahariya. Photo: Nandini Oza

“…We have lived in the forest for generations. Forest is our banker. We know the name and uses of every tree, shrub and herb. If we are made to leave, then the knowledge that we have cherished for generations will be useless. Narmada is our sustenance with many kinds of fish in her belly. The river brings us silt, on its banks we grow maize, jowar, melons, our children swim in the river and our cattle drink its water. The river never dries. In the belly of the river, we have live contented lives for many generations; do we have a right to the mighty river and to our forests or don’t we? How will you compensate us for our forest, river, fish, land, for the joy of living beside the river? What is the price for this? Our gods, and the support of our kin – what price do you put on our adivasi life?…”

And yet, people in the submergence villages of the SSP are being displaced by drowning of their villages, fields and homes and people evicted by use of force. At such times, senior tribal leader of NBA Kevalsingh Vasave says the following when his home and village Nimgavan submerged in the SSP:

“People truly consider Narmada a Devi… Such a revered River; we who live on her banks feel we are her children. When the waters of the Narmada came to my house, the Sardar Sarovar Dam water, at that time I literally performed pooja (of the Narmada). Such a far off river – to reach Narmada it took us 45 minutes of climbing down the hills. The River Narmada herself came to my house and I performed its pooja. In a way we had the feeling of a mother towards the River. I cannot describe her at all.  We fought for 20-22 years to live there, to stay there. We had to do all this to save the River… Who can depict Narmada? It is difficult to describe her. If the Narmada comes to my door then what else would I do but perform pooja? How can I be angry? It was not the fault of the Narmada. Whatever fault was of the human might that made her helpless and bound her. That is why she came and she drowned us. How can we fault her?”  (Kevalsingh Vasave, Oral History Interview by the Author, 2008).
Thus through the oral histories of people in the Narmada valley it is possible to understand the relation that people share with the Narmada river. It helps us understand that the people struggled and resisted the dam not to merely receive some compensation and rehabilitation but to protect a way of life. It helps us understand people’s resistance against the human might that used force to displace them from their ancestral lands, homes, forests and River Narmada herself.

The third insight from the oral history of the Narmada struggle which I wish to bring to light here is that while we talk of protecting heritage, culture, tradition and religion; the people of the Narmada Valley ask which religion, culture and tradition are we talking about protecting?  Today while the nation is caught over the debate of building a single temple in Ayodhya, hundreds of temples on the banks of Narmada are being submerged one after the other in the many dams on the river.

The Narmada like the River Ganga is considered to be one of the holiest rivers where the mere sight of the river absolves every person of all sins.  Every stone on the banks of the Narmada is considered a Shiva Linga.  As per Hindu mythology, Lord Shiva had bestowed a boon on the Narmada that she would remain free flowing for ever, her waters would never dry and no one will be able to capture or bind her. The tribals living on its banks believe that the Narmada gallops and speeds in her flow to meet her beloved- the sea.  Ignoring this rich and diverse mythology, religious and spiritual beliefs and legends the discourse today is building of one single temple in Ayodhya for a dominant belief.

Submergence of Sholpaneshwar Temple. Photo: Not known

As opposed to this, the oral histories of the people in the Narmada valley bring to the fore that the Narmada valley is one of the richest archaeological sites in the country. Eminent archaeologists have said that it would take more than a hundred years to merely study the archaeological sites on its banks. Narmada valley for being one of the oldest river valley civilisations is rich historically, culturally and in its heritage sites. This is best explained by Rehmat, a senior NBA activist from the submergence village Chikhalda in M.P. as follows:

“The Narmada Ghati is a very old human settlement. Dr. S. B. Ota of the Archaeological Survey of India has done a very in-depth study. The area of submergence of SSP is very large. He discovered for study ninety four archaeological mounds in the submergence area. The evidences that Dr. Ota has found here have been discovered for the first time in the country. For example a wooden coin found in Khaparkheda (a submergence village) is the first of its kind in the country.  The other evidence in Khaparkheda found is an iron melting furnace.  In Pipri village, along with evidence of pit-dwellers, many types of precious stones have been found like carnelian, lepislazuli, etc. Dr. Ota’s work has been in the submergence area of SSP. Such information has come forth from the study that the government was scared that if more studies are allowed, information and evidence of the type will be out which is not available in the rest of the country. In that case, more studies would be required and then the work of SSP will have to be stopped. This is why; Navdakhedi village archaeology work was stopped midway, suddenly.  Unfortunately the work was not allowed any further by the government and truth not allowed to be presented before the world” (Rehmat, Oral History Interview by the Author, 2009).

This is how oral histories of the Narmada struggle help us understand:
 

• The conflict between two development ideologies- GDP and for Profits vs. sustainable development based on equity and justice
• The conflict between two world views
• The conflict between two life styles , cultures, traditions within a Nation

The important questions derived from the oral histories of the Narmada struggle are:
 

• Should one world view and development discourse prevail at the cost of the other and with the use of force?
• Is give and take possible?
• Is assimilation of the best of diverse cultures, life styles, traditions possible?
• Is dialogue between the diverse groups of people within a nation possible?

Finally, this work of the oral history of the Narmada movement help us understand the profound influences people’s struggle have had on the large dams’ and development debate the world over. It helps us understand the changing notions of development discourse, people, communities, environment, culture, heritage, traditions, etc in the process of nation building.

This oral history is a tribute to the people of the Narmada valley whose extraordinary struggle has influenced the large dams debate the world over, and has played an important role in redefining sustainable development based on principles of equity and justice.

*Formerly with Narmada Bachao Andolan. Source: History Less Known

Courtesy: Counterview.org
 

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Bhopal: The 33 years of struggle for a river and the lives dependent on it were summarised by two eminent judges on June 4. Justice Gopal Gowda and Justice Abhay Thipsay concluded the Public Hearing of the Narmada aur Kisaani Bachao Andolan. They made a concluding speech at Neelam Park, Bhopal.
 
A Jan Adalat (public hearing) was called by activist Medha Patkar on June 4 by the Narmada Bachao Andolan organisation. “Tribals, farmers, workers and fishermen from Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra are going to attend the public meeting. They would march to Narmada Regulatory Authority to raise their issues. River Narmada has come on its verge of extinction due to the construction of dams, illegal sand mining and channelizing of its water into other tributaries. The link projects on energy, politics of giving benefit to industrial houses and failure to rehabilitate destitute have proved disastrous. Farming in Madhya Pradesh and the country has become a non-profitable occupation. Why are five farmers committing suicides daily in the state even when, as per government claims a number of steps have been taken in their interest. NBA would continue the agitation till farmers get right price of their produce,” NBA media in charge Rahul had said.
 
The final report by the judges will be presented on July 31 at Nisarpur, a Gram Sabha in Madhya Pradesh near the Narmada riverbanks.
 
Full text of Justice Gowda and Justice Thipsay’s judgment on the Save Narmada and Farming movement-
 
The Narmada river flows through four states: Gujarat, MP, Maharashtra and Rajasthan.
 
We have assembled here to conclude the public hearing of the Narmada aur Kisaani Bachao Andolan. We have come to address the grievances of the people who are affected by the acquisition of land for the Narmada Project.
 
Me and my colleague, Abhay Thipsay, are honoured to be presiding over this public hearing after our retirement. We took this opportunity to serve the farming community of this country.
 
I have worked as a judge for 18 and half years from being a High Court Chief Justice to working in the Supreme Court. My brother sat on the lower court to the high court of the constitutional functionary. He has worked for 30 years. We confess that the judgements rendered by us in constitutional courts did not satisfy us as much addressing the grievances and laying down rules of justice for this community has. Even though we have rendered historical judgements to serve the citizens.
 
Listening to your agony and woes has lit a fire in us to serve the country better.
 
We suffer the hot sun with you today because we understand your struggle. You have suffered for 40 years. You are life givers and you protect the humanity of this universe. Your service is greater than ours and we have listened to the witnesses for the last three hours and feel for your woes, difficulties and grievances.

The British came as businessmen to this country, colonised us for 200 years and exploited our material and human resources. It was the sacrifice of farmers, student communities, intellectuals, teachers and the youth under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi and other great leaders that gave us our independence on August 15, 1947. We became a republic on January 26, 1950. We have great literature like the Bhagavad Gita, Quran and the Constitution. The parliamentary democracy has been vibrant due to politicians and statesmen. After listening to the painful stories of the people who lost their land to save the Narmada river and their quest for justice for the last 40 years, the people dependent on the environment for their survival, it doesn’t feel like a democracy that we fought for. It is a mobocracy.
 
This misery is ridiculous. A democracy doesn’t mean a majority rule, then why is it happening in our country? 74 per cent of the population lives in rural areas practising farming, agriculture labour, fishing and more. From the 74 per cent, 50 per cent are women. Even today, most of you who have gathered here are women. Why are you being ruled by industrialists and corporates in the name of democracy? Does nobody think it is so shameful for this country?
 
You are ‘anndata,’ the gods of nourishment. Can the 26 per cent of the people living in urban cities and towns like Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Bhopal and more survive even an hour without the supply of milk, fruits, vegetables, cotton and silk that you provide?
 
By taking advantage of illiteracy and unawareness, they exploit the majority, women, agricultural labourers, peasants and workers. Parliamentary democracy is under the aegis and governance of a great political document, the Constitution of India written by the great Babasaheb Ambedkar.
 
Equality is enshrined in the constitution. Article 21 gives citizens the right to livelihood. Right of residence is guaranteed in article 19 1 (E). Right of occupation is guaranteed under article 19 1 (G). Life needs a source of income for livelihood and liberty. Without these, can this farming community supply food to the 24 per cent of people in this country? At what cost do the kings in cities and corporations want convenience? What has governance and the fundamental federal features been reduced to?
 
Do the chief ministers or the Prime Minister of India care or are aware of the hardship that Indian citizens have to endure in Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh? The last 40 years of Narmada Bachao were not just to save the river herself, it was to save the farming community.
 
In the garb of constructing dams on the river, what has actually happened? Fishermen have lost their lives. Labourers have lost their wages. Farmers have lost their farm, food grains and livelihood. What is happening? What is the Narmada dam development authority doing? What is the grievance redressal authority doing? You have heard 30 witnesses and 30 viewpoints. It took the tribunal 39 years to pass the award after considering certain terms and conditions to protect the community in the four states. But, witness after witness has said how they have not received compensation for their land that now lies submerged. They have not been rehabilitated. Where should the families of displaced people go? What should happen to them? A worker of the century mill said that he had to fight to draw 1 lakh 25 thousand litres water to run his mill. Does he have money to pay the full fees? Is he in that position? It is not just about rehabilitation and resettlement today. It is the lakhs of rupees owed to you because of the agony you’ve had to endure. Under Medha Patkar’s leadership and the Save Narmada movement, many courts have issued orders and directions to the stated over the last 20 or so years. States need to hear to the grievances of the land losers, compute the amount for compensation, award land to them, rehabilitate them, provide civic amenities and infrastructure to the displaced.
 
In a democratic country like India, under the governance of the constitution, what is happening? There is no rule of law in the state of MP, Maharashtra or Gujarat. They are violating the law. They are behaving like pick-pockets who steal from bus passengers but the amount here is not a few notes. A pick-pocket is still charged with a theft case but what about the governments? Thousands of people’s compensation has not been paid. For 40 years they have been deprived of a livelihood and their children have been deprived of education. What should happen to CMs and ministers in such a scenario?
 
This is why the work of Medha Patkar and her team becomes so important and why this public hearing is justified. We are retired judges but even we have social obligations beyond the court. We are the part of the system. My father was a farmer too. I know the pain and the suffering of cultivating paddy, maize, cotton, pulses and earning just Re 1 for all your hard work. Who else will protect the hard-working people of the country who just want to live and earn? If the public servants can’t then are we living in a democracy? Is it good governance?
 
After listening to the leaders from different states and how Medha Patkar has summed up all the problems, we are of the prima facie view that witness’s statements are the undisputed facts. Fishermen have been deprived where water has been diverted and civic facilities were not provided. Rehabilitation has not been completed to its fullest extent. MP government had addressed some issues in this regard. The Grievance Redressal Authority needs to provide and come clean on its directives. The chief ministers of the states should take note of the problems. More awareness about industrial effluents merging with river waters and causing illnesses needs to happen. The chemical reaction due to the effluent mixing with the Narmada river water is affecting agriculture, crops, drinking water, irrigation and more.
 
We have reports from Kaveri and Ganga basin where the effluents have caused cancer and deaths. It is yet to be ascertained if the same is happening to Narmada river.
 
The Narmada river development authority, Grievance Redressal Authority are in blatant violation of the orders of the Supreme Court and High Court. You need to exercise the power of your votes and elect a government that will serve you. That is the spirit of democracy. Vote in your interest and vote with awareness.
 
I also want to talk about MSP (Minimum Support Price.)
 
Lipsticks, toothpaste and other products come with a fixed price or MRP. But if you grow vegetables, wheat or cotton, there is no fixed price.
 
Two bills will be tabled soon, Freedom from Debt and Guaranteed MSP, in the Lok Sabha. Remember that 21 political parties have supported that bill. Remember that they can change their stance once they come in power through your votes. The Swaminathan report in favour of farmers has been pending for 18 years. Farmers consistently bear the burden of Non-performing assets and are punished for someone else’s mistakes.
 
We will forward our directives and observation to the concerned authorities soon.
 
And further, I wanted to tell you that, don’t stop fighting! You are born fighters and have been relentless for 40 years. You must be repaid. If they ignore you and the farming community, it will be their biggest loss. They must always be under pressure. For that, you must remain united and choose representatives that genuinely care about your rights and will protect you. If SC or HC orders are violated, people like Medha Patkar will lead you and people like us will guide you. They will represent you in courts and we will request lawyers in the SC, either Indore or Jabalpur belt, to get you relief. Don’t feel tired. It is your relentless spirit that makes this country work.
 
Our tentative prima facie view is that direct orders have been violated. Resettlement, rehabilitation and provision of civic amenities have not happened. Fundamental rights of citizens have been violated. The environment has been affected. Industrialists have gone scot free. Surplus power in stations has not been provided to people who need it most. Those stations generating that power have come at these people’s cost. They operate because the community has been displaced. You can challenge these industries. You must file PIL’s. you must see to it that these industrialists are not allowed to exploit water reserves meant for irrigation and drinking in these four states.
 
Thank you very much for giving this great opportunity for us to meet you all. It would not have been possible to assemble like this had our forefathers not fought like you do today. We would not have independence.
 
[The speech was edited for relevance. The entire speech can be seen here.]
 

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