NBA: Sardar Sarovar Update
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1. NBA Press Release
2. Delhi Solidarity Group of NBA: Press Release
1. NBA Press Release
Narmada Bachao Andolan
62, Gandhi Marg, Badwani - 454551, Madhya Pradesh
Email: nba.medha
gmail.com
Contact Tel: 9869446684, 9894204498
Medha Patkar and Others Arrested While Seeking Appointment with UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.
Gramsabhas in the Narmada Valley expose Government claims and Oversight Group methods!
Narmada valley will fight floods and the State with all brethren facing the same fate & eminent citizens as observers.
Medha Patkar and nearly 100 others were arrested today (June 19) in New Delhi while they reached UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi's residence, seeking an appointment with her and urging her to intervene in the matter of the lives and livelihood of Sardar Sarovar dam affected people. The sections under which they are held is not told by the police.
The arrested include representatives of the affected villages in the Narmada valley and their supporters, like Prof. Manoranjan Mohanty, Rakesh Rafik, Rajendra Ravi, Bhupender Rawat and Vijayan MJ. Senior activists of Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) Ahish Mandloi, Sajan Behen, Sitaram Patidar, Dipti Bhatnagar and Philip Mathew are also under arrest at the time of release of this statement.
The Oversight Group (OG) chaired by Mr.V.K Shunglu the former CAG, appointed by the Prime Minister in April 2006 to look into the ground realities of rehabilitation in the Sardar Sarovar dam affected villages in the Narmada valley, has its Terms of Reference contradictory since the dam is to reach the targeted height of 122 metres by the time OG submits its report.
It is certain now that OG can neither do anything to ensure nor even suggest ways for, just rehabilitation of the affected families even in the minimal legal framework of the Narmada Tribunal Award or the state policies. What is certain, however, is that the demonic dam will submerge anywhere up to 220 villages of adivasis, dalits, farmers, fishworkers, artisans and traders. The pakka houses, schools, dispensaries, lakhs of trees to best of horticulture will be destroyed as in a natural calamity, but with a preplanned design.
It is shocking that the National Sample Survey organization (NSSO), appointed by the OG to carry out the survey in the villages used only the official Action Taken Report (ATR), the government list of affected families, as the main basis and didn't go to the left out families or deep questioning to find out the legal violations to incomplete plans or false reports continued over years.
While the research tools were mostly kept a secret, whatever information people, watching and responding to the surveyors could gather, exhibits a highly superficial ineffective data collection, and a biased, hence distorted way of investigating the state acts and reports on Resettlement and Rehabilitation (R&R).
To our greatest shock, the OG also brought in, what may be called 'privatisation' in its work, expending lakhs of Rupees in contracting private company, Infrastructure Development Consultancy with Mr. P C Nigam, an ex-Engineer-in-chief of MPPWD as its chairman, that has done projects for the world bank, ADB and MP governments all through, while the OG has chosen this real democratic way to establish the truth would have been 'Gramsabhas resolving on the ground reality', under PESA Act, 1996 and as per the constitutional rights and privileges granted to a scheduled tribal region under threat of state violence.
In this context the 20 years long people's struggle today to establish the credibility of our claims and exposing the Government's when the costly exercise of OG/ NSSO Survey is not likely to do it. Our tireless efforts to establish the truth about displacement and fake campaigns against peoples' movements in all river valleys must proceed and break the barriers.
Since the judiciary to unfortunately opted to subvert its own judgements, relying on the same survey, people and communities in the valley decided to accept it! Gramsabhas in the Narmada Valley have one after another, brought out through resolutions in their meetings, but according to them was the status of the resettlement and rehabilitation with
A number of legal violations and their entitlements that stand vindicated even today.
The Gramsabhas were supported in recording their information, analysis, claims and expectations, by our technical support group of educated young volunteers who stayed and worked with the them to carry out a household survey community level survey, both. They also did the report writing in English. A high level technical advisory committee on this, on the other hand gave broader guidance and purpose in this regard. Committee members include Mr L C Jain, Dr. Upendra Baxi, Mr Ramaswamy Iyer and Advocate Girish Patel.
We have submitted today a report on survey by 4 gramsabhas, which bring out clear fraud in the Government claim that R&R of all the families upto 122 Metres is complete and legally fulfilled. The CM of MP has once again made a false rhetorical statement of having rehabilitated all the families and completed the work at the R&R sites while there are no R&R sites for any of the 100% adivasi villages in District Jhabua and many in Badwani District in MP, the factual data shows that in each of the fully surveyed communities
There are families left out with no land allotted, nor offered; with land to become marooned but not surveyed; compensation not fully paid.
There are hundreds of families in just these 4 villages, who have no house plot to shift to
In Piplood acquisition of land and property that is to be affected by 122 Metres high dam is not completed.
The following is a gist of major flaws that exposed illegalities and falsehood
SSP : Claims of R&R at 122 metres in MP exposed
| Village, District,State | Cultivable Agricultural Land not allotted in the state of choice (declared + undeclared ) | House plots not allotted (declared + undeclared) | ||
| Declared | Undeclared | Declared | Undeclared | |
| Piplood, Badwani, MP | 39 | 95 | 107 | 212 |
| Kharya Bhadal, Badwani, MP | 30 | 45 | 30 | 47 |
| Anjanwara, Jhabua, MP | 33 | 47 | 33 | 52 |
| Bhadal, Nandurbar, Maharashtra | 49 | 126 | 49 | 126 |
Many more gramsabhas with locus standi and rights are ready with their own data and resolutions, which would challenge the OG's, or a private companies data. This, we believe, will be a new battle in the face of dishonesty, misinformation and defamation campaign by the state and it's stooges. We will flood concerned authorities, with data before their plans to flood and finish us come true.
The OG however is to be more seriously being questioned by the people in the valley who have seen many of the surveyor teams and OG members moving with group of government employees and officials while avoiding dialogue with the people themselves the affected. The OG after having listened to NBA and supporter advocates once, have not shown any transparency and openness to make available its research tools while not just the secrecy but the methodological flaws in their work are now fully exposed
The death tolls are ringing in the Narmada Valley. While the callous state has shown the criminal arrogance to allow the worse at Sardar Sarovar Dam to go ahead, lakhs of people in the submergence zone (our estimate remain stable and reliable at 3500) can be affected at 122 meters depending on the rainfall, stay on to fight the flood and the conspiracy, both. The oversight group does not give us much hope on its methodology, transparency and accountability to the task and people at this severely critical mode, when life is at stake.
Ashish Mandloi | Ramesh Yadav | Kailash Awasia | Dipti Bhatnagar | Medha Patkar
2. Delhi Solidarity Group of NBA Press Release
Delhi Solidarity Group
of Narmada Bachao Andolan
Contact address: c/o Delhi Forum, F-10/12
Malaviya Nagar, New Delhi - 110017
Press Release June 18, 2006
The struggles of the poor against unjust displacement will only increase: Justice Sachar
"Under these circumstances, the struggles of the poor against unjust displacement will only increase in number and intensity" former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court, Rajinder Sachar said referring to the grave situation and lack of rehabilitation and resettlement of the people displaced by the Sardar Sarovar dam in the Narmada valley. Justice Sachar was addressing the people's convention today (18 June) on 'Myths, Lies and the Narmada Betrayal' organized at the Indian Social Institute, New Delhi by the Delhi Solidarity Group of Narmada Bachao Andolan.
More than 300 people from the Narmada Valley led by Medha Patkar of the Narmada Bachao Andolan and their supporters from Delhi gathered at the convention to express their anguish at the callousness of the central and the concerned state governments (Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh) and the indifference of the judiciary to the plight of the thousands of families that remain to be rehabilitated.
Speaking at the occasion, Medha Patkar said, "The continued construction of the dam is guided by a politics of deceit, loot and betrayal. The construction of the dam continues in violation of the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal Award and Supreme Court orders of 2000 and 2005, and despite the Group of Ministers clearly reporting the lack of adequate rehabilitation".
The Delhi supporters included academicians and activists like, Kamal Mitra Chenoy, Dr. Nandini Sunder, Dunu Roy, Subhash Borkar, Kavita Krishnan, Arudhati Roy, V T Padmanabhan, Dr. Jimmy Dabhy and Sumit Chakravarty. Academician and peace activist Dr. T.K. John inaugurated the convention.
Speakers at the convention said that the latest eyewash in this undemocratic process was the appointment of the Oversight Group headed by V.K. Shunglu. They testified that the Committee's mode of operation and its survey methodology have been highly problematic. Surveys have not been exhaustive or comprehensive. Instead they have been carried out very hurriedly, in select areas, and without adequate consultation with the affected people.
Making a strong statement, Shantibehen from Pipri village (Madhya Pradesh) said, "We have a right to save our river, our livelihoods and our land and we also have a right to make ourselves heard to the politicians and judiciary in Delhi".
Speaking about evictions in Delhi, Lalit Batra said, "Displacement has now become a political issue. It is used not just to push people out of their homes, but more importantly to silence any form of dissent". The meeting also deliberated upon other major struggles against displacement, including evictions in Delhi and Mumbai.
Vijayan M J - 9868 165471 | Malavika Vartak - 9313900378
Rajendra Ravi - 98682 00316 | Shree Prakash - 9818 030423
(on behalf of Delhi Solidarity Group for NBA)
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