With the agitation against raising Omkareshwar dam water level here in Madhya Pradesh continuing for the 11th day on Tuesday, the condition of protestors who are squatting in the river has worsened.
A member of the Narmada Bachao Andolan Alok Agarwal, who is also a local Aam Aadmi Party leader and among the protestors, said that the condition of the protestors who have been standing, squatting in the river water for 11 days is consistently deteriorating and the land of many farmers has come under the indundated area due to raising water level.
The people are protesting that the water-level in the dam is being raised to 191 metres from 189 metres, which has resulted in a large area of farming land becoming inundated.
The protest has also pitted the Aam Aadmi Party against the State government with the AAP accusing the government of turning obstinate while the government is terming the AAP’s charge as baseless.
AAP’s national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has written to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan that he could not approach him despite repeated attempts to discuss the matter.
In Bhopal, Narmada Valley Development Minister Lal Singh Arya on Tuesday termed the AAP’s concerns for the rehabilitation of the affected people as baseless, saying it is unfathomable why a step intended to help farmers in irrigation is being protested against. - IANS
