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dam-l LS: Indian Citizens Group In The US Demands Justice
NARMADA SUPPORT GROUP
8814, 62ND AVENUE
COLLEGE PARK MD 20740
Kiran/Vijay (301) 345-7250
July 7, 1999
Indian citizens group meets Indian
Deputy
Ambassador, demands justice from the
Indian
governments for dam-affected people
of Narmada
valley
In a significant hour-long meeting
with the Indian Deputy
Ambassador at Washington, D.C. on
July 6, 1999, a group of
Indian citizens living in the U.S.
expressed grave concern for the
plight of the people of the Narmada
valley who are about to lose
their homes, land and livelihood due
to the Sardar Sarovar dam on
the Narmada river in Western India.
They emphasized that they
had made attempts to peruse every
public source of information on
the current situation, and could not
avoid arriving at the
conclusion that justice was not
being served to those affected by
the construction. They were given a
patient hearing from the
Deputy Ambassador. Showing him
reports and on-site video
evidence of the dismal lack of
rehabilitation measures, the group
felt that the state and central
governments should take immediate
action to prevent the injustice and
to implement the provisions of
the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal.
The current situation arises out of
an interim judgement by the
Supreme Court of India lifting a 4
year long stay on the
construction of the dam, permitting
the height to be raised to 88
m. This is expected to submerge
about 60 villages with 2500 tribal
families. The group, after careful
review of newspaper reports,
site-visits and video documentation,
has been compelled to
conclude that rehabilitation
arrangements simply do not exist.
Among the most persuasive pieces of
evidence is a short videotape
shows the officials of Nandurbar
district, Maharashtra, admitting
that out of 285 hectares which are
claimed to be allocated for
resettling 185 families of the
district, only 2 hectares of stony
uncultivable land is available.
Based on this and several other
press reports, the group believes
that this is representative of the
situation for most of the affected
villages. Ambassador
Sreenivasan expressed confidence
that the Indian government
would not do anything inimical to
the people in the overall scheme
of things, and that he would expect
the dam's larger benefits to
justify the aberrations being
pointed out.
The group pointed out that the
governments have failed to
implement their own laws and
presented wrong information to the
courts; they demanded that justice
be restored to the people, the
governments present the correct
information to the courts, and the
decision on continuing the project
be subjected to a comprehensive
review based on the new information.
They underlined the fact
that the concern for this issue is
shared by hundreds of Indian
citizens all over the U.S.
Ambassador Sreenivasan promised to
forward the petitions and the
Citizens' Statement to the
governments in India promptly. The
Citizens' Statement on the
Narmada, with references, is on the
Web at:
http://members.tripod.com/AID_SC/nba/statement.htm.
Narmada Support Group is a citizens'
group pursuing the truth of
the development process in the
Narmada valley, and supporting
justice and human rights for the
valley's native people. The group
raises awareness and support in the
local and international
community.
For further information contact
Kiran/Vijay: (301) 345-7250,
Prasad (703) 329-0646.
Web site:
http://members.tripod.com/AID_SC/nba/statement.htm
E-mail: vissa@eng.umd.edu