Raising Sardar Sarovar dam height will spell doom for poor: Medha Patkar

BHOPAL: A large number of oustees of Narmada projects led by Narmada Bacaho Andolan (NBA) activist Medha Patkar sat on dharna near CM house on Thursday. They wanted to meet chief minister to highlight their concern over raising Sardar Sarovar dam height, but in vain.
"We could see chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's cavalcade passing from dharna site but he did not stop to meet tribals and poor, who are affected and have been rendered landless because of these projects Whole day, we waited for him but he did not turn up to listen to our pleas," Medha told TOI before leaving Bhopal.
"Around 45,000 dam-hit families are yet to be rehabilitated. Raising dam height to 138.68 m would spell doom on more poor people," Patkar said.
Gujarat government has started construction on October 8 to raise dam height from 121.92 metres to 138.68 metres and to install radial gates on the dam. In June 2014, Union government gave approval to Gujarat government to raise the height of the dam. Following this development, she said, there are fresh issues related to relief and rehabilitation, huge corruption in rehabilitation work which is being investigated and violation of norms by Narmada valley Development Authority (NVDA).
"We wanted to tell CM all this. Whole day officials kept assuring us that they would arrange meeting with CM, but in vain. MP has three ministers in Modi cabinet, still voice of the state is not "heard in Delhi."
"Owing to pressure from Narendra Modi, Uma Bharti would talk about saving Ganga only but she has no time to talk about Narmada," Patkar alleged.
Besides Sardar Sarovar dam oustees, oustees from other projects on Narmada and Adani power project in Chhindwara among others were also there. Meanwhile, Shyamla Hills police have registered a case against Patkar, Sunilam and their supporters. FIR was registered under different sections of IPC, including 147 (rioting), 341 (punishment for wrongful restraint) and 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant).