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dam-l Bargi Dam Protest
>Action Alert and Press Note/ December 8, 1998
NARMADA BACHAO ANDOLAN
nba@LWBDQ.LWBBS.NET (Nba)
BARGI OUSTEES LAUNCH DHARNA FOR LOWERING THE DAM LEVEL
>STRUGGLE FOR THE DRAWDOWN LAND FOR OUSTEES INTENSIFIES
>
>
>Over five hundred men and women from the villages affected by the
>controversial Bargi dam in the Narmada valley have launched an
>indefinite dharna (sit-in) for the demand to reduce the reservoir level
>down to 418 meters till December 15, to enable them to claim the
>drawdown land. If the Government of Madhya Pradesh fails to adhere to
>the agreement made with the " Bargi Bandh Visthapit Evam Prabhavit
>Sangh" in August 1997, the people will be compelled to intensify the
>agitation and mass action, warned Rajkumar Sinha of the Sangh. " The
>struggle in Bargi is the symbol of the long struggle of all those
>already ousted by such large dams. Therefore, those who have not left
>their land and villages should not move out. And those, who had already
>been ousted must fight for their rights and life and we call upon the
>people and organisations to extend active support to Bargi people
>struggle ", said Basanti Behn, the fiery leader of the villagers.
>Hundreds of farmers, labourers, fisherpeople men and women are
>participating in the dharna.
>
>The displaced people of Bargi dam have been demanding that the level of
>the reservoir be brought from 422 metres to 418 meters and the drawdown
>land be distributed equitably among the oustees. More than 2500 hectares
>of drawdown land would be available due to the lowering of the reservoir
>level. The Bargi oustees have already got the right of exclusive fishing
>in the reservoir - the first such instance in India- after an arduous
>struggle from 1992 onwards. The organisation has also extended a helping
>hand to the government of Madhya Pradesh in coordinating the resource
>based resettlement of the oustees. However, despite the cooperation with
>the government, the oustees' condition continued to be abysmal. The
>people had resorted to " Jal Samrpan (Sacrifice in water) satyagraha" to
>press for their demands. Despite assurances when the government failed
>to meet the basic requirements regarding the land and resettlement, the
>Bargi oustees launched Satyagraha in 1996 monsoon at the level
>of 418 meters, and later a sit -in and an indefinite fast in the monsoon
>of 1997 in Jabalpur. In the end the state government had agreed to
>streamline the resettlement process and lower the reservoir level at 418
>meters on December 15 to enable the farmers to take rabi crop. However,
>the government did not fulfill its promise in December 1997.
>
>After a series of protest marches and warning rallies in Jabalpur and in
>the rural hinterlands, the people have launched the dharna near the
>office of the concerned Government Engineer in Bargi Nagar, near the
>dam site and resettlement colony. The oustees had held the "Lok Manch"
>(People's Forum) in each of the Assembly constituencies during recently
>concluded Assembly elections, summoning all the candidates and main
>activists of the political parties in their area and confronting them
>with the issues of dam, resettlement and the other issues of
>development.
>
>The villagers have appealed to the organisations and people all over
>India to press on the Government of M.P. to honour its agreement with
>the people and immediately lower the reservoir level of Bargi dam at 418
>meters to open the drawdown land and start the process of conferring the
>land rights on the villagers.
>
>The appeals can be made to
>Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Mr. Digvijay Singh, Shyamala Hills,
>Bhopal ( Ph. 0755-540501, Fx: 540500) and
>Ms. Vijayalaxmi Sadho, Minister for Narmada Development, Vallabh Bhavan,
>Bhopal. M.P.
>
>
SANJAY SANGVAI
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Aleta Brown
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way
Berkeley, CA 94703 USA
Phone: 1.510.848.1155
Fax: 1.510.848.1008
email: aleta@irn.org
http://www.irn.org