Sardar Sarovar Region Flooding/ Mass Protests on the 4th of July
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NARMADA BACHAO ANDOLAN
62 Gandhi Marg, Badwani, M.P. Ph. 07290-222464 nba.badwani
gmail.com
Maitri Niwas, Tembewadi, Dhadgaon, Nandurbar, Maharashtra. Ph: 02595-220620
C/o B-13, Shivam Flats, Ellora Park, Vadodara -390023 Ph: 0265-2282232
nba.barodagmail.com
Press Release 01 July 2007
- FLASH FLOODS IN NIMAD, 80 HOUSES AFFECTED
- MASS RALLY ON JULY 4TH IN BADWANI (DISTRICT HEAD QUARTERS)
It was a shocking view as we reached the villages of Khaparkheda, Bajrikheda and Karmal. The water level rose and took away as many as 80 houses. Families have lost their houses, grains, clothes and other household items.
A big drain that flows between Khaparkheda and Bajrikheda has led to such a severe impact without the Narmada waters entering inside the villages. The water has reached the Reservoir Water Level mark.
Hence, it is very clear to the villagers that the official inserted stone marks are not going to be the real indicators of what could be the impact of this flash flood. And when the dam height reaches the final mark of 138.68 metres, one can only imagine the amount of destruction it will bring.
A large chunk of land in Khaparkheda is left out of acquisition while the Government claimed that the same would not be submerged. The people living have continuously complained over the years. The scenario in the villages today confirms the people's fears to be real and the Government's claims to be false.
The flood came and one by one, houses started collapsing. The volunteering farmers and youths from the village saved life and some of the property, while the rest flowed with the water. A few cattle also flowed along with the water.
This makes clear that the Government has no machinery to inform the flooded villages whether dam-related or otherwise. The Government is almost absent in the relief work. Andolan activists informed the police at 2 a.m. and they reached the site with the Tehsildar only around 11 a.m.
No relief material has reached the villages yet, while the NBA could provide some plastic sheets and the food arrangements were made by the villagers. While the loss incurred, is mostly of the dalits, adivasis and a few other farmer families. The rest of the villagers made arrangements in their houses for the affected families and in public school premises. One can only imagine some financial assistance that too a meager sum, which the affected families can claim under the ongoing scheme.
The real question is – 'Should this years experience be taken as a warning against the unpredictable drought and flood cycle which the valley is bound to face as a result of the cascade of dams with Sardar Sarovar at the tail?' It is clear that due to displacement without rehabilitation and the struggle under NBA and court orders, the upstream dams especially Indira Sagar and Omkareshwar cannot be fully filled and hence the reservoir water will be released from time and again to flood the villages and lands underneath.
The unpredictability of the impact is for sure going to result to a torturous situation, which no one can avoid. This seems to be just the beginning. People in Sardar Sarovar region will have a Mass Protest Rally in Badwani (District Head Quarter) on the 4th of July.
Ashish Mandloi Kamla Yadav Medha Patkar
narmada 2007 | narmada | www.agp.org (archives) | www.all4all.org