For Immediate Release: 10th August, 2013 Narendra Modi’s SSP political campaign: Anti-national & Anti-development No real benefits to Maharashtra and M.P: Submergence of 2.5 lakh population is illegal Mumbai: As elections are round the corner, the BJP Government in Gujarat and the State Chief Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi have once again begun playing the same old Sardar Sarovar card, knowing pretty well that the Project, which the Planning Commission estimates to cost more than 70,000 crores as on date (ten times the initial sanctioned cost) has not lived up to its tall claims and paper promises. With the BJP led Madhya Pradesh Govt. on its side, that cares little for the thousands of hectares of fertile land to be submerged and thousands of families to be affected in 193 villages, Gujarat’s CM and some of its MPs have been moving the Prime Minister’s Office, to clear the final height of the dam (from 122 mts to 138 mts) and consign 2.5 lakh people in the Narmada valley to a watery grave, as had happened in Uttarakhand. It is in this context that Mr. Modi’s critique of the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and his absolutely false political propaganda needs to be condemned and exposed. Much against the bogus claim that Maharashtra can get 400 crores free electricity from the SSP, Maharashtra, which has sacrificed a few thousands crores of revenue, by submergence of 33 hilly adivasi villages, has not been getting the expected quantum of electricity as decided by the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal Award, 1979 (Award). While electricity generation at Sardar Sarovar started since 2004, Maharashtra got its first meagre share of 3 million units (MU) only in 2006. On an average, the state has been getting less than 540 MU of electricity, which is less than 1% of Maharashtra’s power generation capacity. Gujarat, which has been riding high on the back of Kutch and Saurashtra to displace thousands of families in 245 villages in Narmada valley, has now been exposing its true colours by has excluding 4 lakh hectares of land from the proposed command area. It has willfully deviated from the terms of the Award and begun diverting SSP waters to industries, municipalities and big cities like Baroda, Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar etc., which is absolutely illegal and a gross betrayal of the interests of thousands of farmers in Gujarat itself. When Gujarat doesn’t canal network is not built beyond 25-30% over the last 30 years, what is the need to raise the height and fill more water to drown the valley? There are not less than 48,000 families in the submergence area, to be affected even at the present dam height and are not rehabilitated with entitlements of land for the adivasis-farmers, alternative livelihood for the landless, house plots and amenities at the resettlement sites etc. However, since 1994, adivasi villages and since 2000 even densely populated villages in the plains are being affected, the largest number of villages affected, are in M.P. (193). There are most than 1,000 hilly adivasi families in Maharashtra whose land based rehabilitation is still pending. Besides there are hundreds of other families, who are to be provided various rehabilitation entitlements. The State is yet to identify land for the rehabilitation of all these families. The Narmada Andolan has exposed more than 3 crores corruption in the land purchase process in the state, leading to suspension of 5 officials and notice to pay back 90 lakh rupees to the state. The Govt. of Maharashtra was always taking a stand that rehabilitation of hundreds of adivasis in the state must be completed prior to dam construction and submergence and the State cannot and should not bow down to the pressure tactics of Gujarat. Even after sacrificing, 9,600 hectares of land (6,500 hectares forest land and 1,500 ha agricultural land), the Maharashtra has not been getting its due share of electricity, nor are its oustees fully rehabilitated, so the issue of pushing the dam ahead is certainly illegal. In M.P, a Judicial Commission of Inquiry was appointed by the State High Court, when massive corruption, worth almost 1,000 crores was unearthed by the farmers themselves, along with NBA, in the rehabilitation process. The state government itself had to admit 686 land purchase registries as fake, while the actual figure could be 3,000 or even more. Inquiry by the Commission is on since the last 5 years in every aspect of rehabilitation including house plot allotment, quality of civic amenities, fraud in the lists of affected families, betrayal of landless etc. The report is due any time after October and a pre-mature political decision on the dam would be a huge fraud on the people and the Courts. The Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal Award and all the Supreme Court’s judgements, (1991, 2000, 2002, 2005) clearly directed full and fair implementation of the NWDTA, are to be violated once again, is there is any raise, in the dam height, at this stage. Flooding the villages, where life is on with pucca houses, shops, markets, schools, temples and mosques and lakhs of trees will be a gross injustice, against law and contempt of court. The Prime Minister himself had given a written commitment to the Apex Court on 17th April, 2006 i.e. on the 21st day of fast in New Delhi, that all the families upto 122 mts were not rehabilitated while that height was sanctioned and that rehabilitation would be complete within 3 months i.e. by June, 2006. The same has not yet happened and hence there could be no permission granted for further work at the dam. It is also criminal that the Narmada Control Authority has been claiming, on the basis of false reports from the state governments that ‘rehabilitation is complete’ in the 3 states, when thousands of families are yet to be rehabilitated, numerous legal process are on – the Judicial Commission inquiry, hundreds of cases are pending disposal before the Grievance Redressal Authorities (GRA), hundreds of orders are yet to be implemented etc. Like last year, this monsoon as well, more than 2,000 hectares of farm land and numerous house in M.P. and Maharashtra have faced illegal submergence, without rehabilitation and the oustees have not even been compensated for the same, despite orders from the GRA. The Expert Committees appointed by the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests have also exposed non-compliance by Gujarat, M.P. and Maharashtra on numerous environmental safeguarded measures, which the Supreme Court has upheld as mandatory, before there can be any raise in the dam height. Why can’t the MoEF and the Narmada Control Authority under the Ministry of Water Resources compel Gujarat to complete execution of all environmental measures and building of canal network phase-wise and thereby utilize the already ponded waters? The entire issue is being politicized with an eye on the 2014 elections, but people’s lives and livelihoods being at stake, we can’t allow such a heinous crime to be committed by flooding houses, communities, fields, and forests any more, not till all legal pre-conditions are fulfilled. The country cannot brook another planned Uttarakhand in the Narmada valley, merely for political gains. We warn the Narmada Control Authority (NCA) not to clear the raising of the dam height and also warn R&R Sub – Group to withdraw its decision. When the Uttarakhand calamity has already taught a lesson, we cannot allow the Narmada valley to face the same, people from the most beautiful and ancient valley warn the Governments. The people will compel the authorities to comply with law and are prepared to fight the vulgar politics tooth and nail, both on the field and in the Courts. Medha Patkar Kailash Awasya Yogini Khanolkar Kamla Yadav Meera Contact: 09423944390 / 09179148973
Posted on: Wed, 14 Aug 2013 04:23:45 +0000
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