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DAM-L LS: Hundreds Capture NCA Office, Indore (fwd)
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subject: LS: Hundreds Capture NCA Office, Indore
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NARMADA BACHAO ANDOLAN
B-13, Shivam Flats, Ellora Park, Baroda-7 * 58, Gandhi Marg, Badwani, M.P.
( Phone- Baroda 0265-382232* Badwani- 07290-22464
Email:badwani@narmada.org; medhapatkar@vsnl.com
Press note- 11.12.2000
Hundreds capture the NCA office in Indore
People affected at 90 mts not rehabilitated: NCA concedes
Narmada Tribunal Ridiculed:SC Order Again Exposed
As the hundreds of the villagers from the Narmada valley virtually
captured the office of Narmada Control Authority(NCA), the apex
authority for the dam building, in Indore on Monday, December 11, the
NCA official conceded that the people affected by the 90 meters of
height of the Sardar Sarovar dam have not been rehabilitated till
date. The Indian Supreme Court has given the order on October 18,
this year that the construction on the dam should be taken upto 90
meters , even without consulting NCA or assessing the ground reality
of the displacement and rehabilittion under the 90 mts.
Hundreds of people affected by Sardar Sarovar Project from the
mountains and plains of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat are
once again on the streets, this time in Indore. Women and men peasants
from Western Nimad and adivasis from the Vindya and Satpura are in
fighting to protect their right to life, with determination to stop the
work of Sardar Sarovar dam.
On the Monday ( December 11) morning they captured the office of
Narmada Control Authority (NCA) in Indore. People's slogans expressed
both their rage over the unjust verdict and resolve to not leave
their homes and villages. People were determined to expose the
irresponsibility and contradictions in the verdict, for making
judiciary accountable and sensitive towards the ordinary people.
The final order of the Supreme Court of October 18, had clearly
directed the NCA to prepare a comprehensive plan for rehabilitation
within 4 weeks. " Is that plan ready? If there is no agricultural land
for the affected people, can they be 'rehabilitated' just with concrete
structures of schools and Panchayat office, without a source of
livelihood? Where is the land to rehabilitate all the people affected
by the Project? If there is no agricultural land, even for people
affected by 90 mts., is it not illegal and unjust to raise the height
of the dam?", asked the people. As in the meeting with officials of
Maharashtra government and NVDA officials in Badwani on 7th December
2000, even the NCA officials accepted, on December 11, that there is
no land for rehabilitation in Madhya Pradesh..
Rehabilitation Chief of NCA, Dr. Afroz Ahmad had a discussion with the
people from 11 am till 9 pm. Other officials were not available. He
accepted that according to their own reports, people affected at 90 mts
have not been rehabilitated till now. Devram bhai, Dedlibai and Clifton
Rosario pointed out that NCA and government's figures about the number
of families left to be rehabilitated, grossly underestimate the
situation on the ground. Government surveys and lists are incomplete
and leave out mainy claimants. Actual number of people who might be
affected by 90 mts dam is likely to be at least 3 times more than the
official figure of 1000 families. Dr. Ahmad accepted that raising the
dam without rehabilitating people will mean violation of the Narmada
Tribunal and the Supreme Court verdict itself. People are camping
inside the NCA office, till they get satisfactory answers to their
questions.
When asked about the plan that NCA was suppose to produce as per the
Supreme Court directions, Dr Ahmed said that NCA had prepared and
approved a time table (actions plan) for rehabilitation and
construction of the dam. According to that the dam is expected to be
completed by year 2005. The plan is to rehabilitate people affected by
100 mts of dam by 2001 December. But NCA's 'time table' is not based on
any details about the availability of land in the three states. People
asked, how can NCA prepare and approve a arbitrary time table without
verifying State government's claims about availability of land and
ensuring agricultural land for every affected family? It was pointed
out that if government required 20 years to resettle 25 % of people
affected by the reservoir of Sardar Sarovar, it will need another 60
years to take care of the remaining 75 % PAFs.
According to the Narmada Tribunal, people should get possession of
alternative land, one year before their original land is submerged. The
dam is being raised upto 90 mts without ensuring rehabilitation for
people affected even at 85 mts. This means that the present
construction is illegal. Is it known, despite the action plan of NCA,
the Gujarat government wants to raise the height of the dam to 110
mts. But that will mean that even several thickly populated villages
from Nimad will go under water. NBA would like to admonish the
concerned Ministries, Chief Ministers and the Prime Minister, who is
suppose to take the final decision as per, the court order, to not
allow such colossal destruction and inflict human tragedy on lakhs of
people. At this juncture people have no choice but to take on the
challenge of questioning such destruction and injustice by taking the
struggle to its peak!
Devram Kanera
Geeta bahen
Luharia
Dalsukh kaka
Sukumar
Suklala Pavra
Dedli bai Vasave
Praveen
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