Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, D Raja, Bhagwant Mann, Jitendra Choudhary, Aruna Roy, Hannan Mollah, Anie Raja, and many others on solidarity fast at Jantar Mantar

Yogendra Yadav, Alok Agarwal, Sandeep Pandey, and Dr Sunilam end their solidarity fast on second day

A team of doctors conduct medical check up, raise alarm about the deteriorating health condition of people on fast, including Medha Patkar

MPs and eminent people write collective letter to Prime Minister, ask to intervene and send team of representatives to Chikhalda in Narmada Valley and talk to people sitting on fast

Narmada Bachao Andolan

Solidarity call

Sharad Yadav, Janata Dal United; Sitaram yechury, CPM; D Raja, CPI; Raju Shetty, Shetkari Sanghatana; Jitendra Choudhary, CPM; Mohammad Salim, CPM; Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav, RJD; Kaushlendra Kumar, JDU; P Karunakar, CPM; P L Sarimath, CPM; M B Ragesh, CPM; Shankar Prasad Dutta, CPM; Joe George; Dharamvir Gandhi, AAP; Dr. N Sampath; C N Jayadevan; Bhagwant Maan; Tariq Anwar, Nationalist Congress Party; and more than 50 emienets and representatives of people’s organisation have appealed to Medha Patkar and 11 others of Narmada Valley to end their fast, ask Prime Minister to intervene immediately.

Barwani, Madhya Pradesh | August 4, 2017: On the 9^th day of indefinite fast in Narmada Valley, Medha Patkar and 11 others are still continuing their indefinite fast in Chikhalda against the illegal and unjust submergence and forced evictions without complete and just rehabilitation of more than 40000 families affected by Sardar Sarovar Dam in Narmada Valley.

In Delhi, at Janatar Mantar, Yogendra Yadav, Alok Agrawal, Sandeep Pandey and Dr Sunilam ended their solidarity fast on second day in the presence of Aruna Roy, Annie Raja, Shabnam Hashmi, former MP Hannan Mollah, CPM; D Raja, CPI; Jitendra Choudhary CPM, Bhagwant Mann, AAP; Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, RJD; Bhupendra Singh Rawat, Jan Sangharsh Vahini; Soumya Dutta, Environmentalist and energy expert; Supreme Court Advocate Sanjay Parikh; Vandana Prasad, Nandini Sundar, Laila Kabir Fernandes, Jignesh Mevani, Rashtriya Adhikaar Manch, Shehla Rashid, JNU student union; and many others.

18 MPs from various political party write letter to prime minister urging immediate intervention and asking him to send representatives to Chikhalda village and talk to Medha Patkar and others to ensure the complete and just rehabilitation of more than 40000 families Narmada Valley affected from Sardar Sarovar project.

Sharad Yadav, Arvind Kejriwal, Sitaram Yechury separately issue separate statement in support of Narmada bachao andolan and asked Medha Patkar and 11 others people of Narmada Valley to end their fast. Many political leaders, MPs, social activists, retired judges, journalists and representatives of people’s organisation also wrote to prime minister urging for immediate intervention and immediately opening the gates of Sardar Sarovar Dam till complete and just rehabilitation of more than 40000 families living in Sardar Sarovar affected region of Narmada Valley.

Hundreds of protest already happened in different parts of country in support and solidarity with people of Narmada Valley demanding complete and just rehabilitation. but the Government of Madhya Pradesh shamelessly putting false claims of complete rehabilitation again and again without listening to the movement and the people of Narmada Valley still living in the submergence area.

Yesterday night a team of government doctors which included senior doctor, lab technician and an assistant visited and conducted medical check up of Medha Patkar and 11 other people of Narmada Valley sitting on indefinite fast since last 9 days. As per the doctors, health of all the people is deteriorating very fast. The blood pressure is very low and they also found ketone in the blood. SDM Rishi Gupta and station house officer C. B. Singh were also present at the time along with supporting Kukshi MLA Shri Surendra Singh Baghel.

Doctors advised all of them to get admitted in the hospital for immediate detailed health check up. But Medha Patkar and others denied by saying that the authorities should not worry only for 12 people but also for the lakhs of people of Narmada Valley still waiting for complete and just rehabilitation. The gates of Sardar Sarovar Dam should be opened until the complete and just rehabilitation of all the people living in the Narmada valley.

Yesterday Dhar collector Shriman Shukla, who was on the visit to Nisarpur, had claimed that Rehabilitation of 8 villages have been completed out of 50 villages, which are Jal Kheda and Patavar from manawar tehsil, nimbola, Gulati and Balwara from Dharampuri tehsil, Sisgaon, Dehar, and Dasaanda from Kukshi. All these villages were shown out of submergence from back water level in 2008 due to that there are very few houses under submergence region as per government data. As per the ground reports there are still 10 houses in JhalaKheda yet to be rehabilitated whereas the rehabilitation site of Dasanda village has not been made yet. Then where has the reahabilitation happened without any rehabilitation site? Few families were rehabilitated in Gujarat long back. 7 houses of Deher Village are still left to be rehabilitated. Now the question is, why the government always putting false claims of complete rehabilitation again and again when the ground realities are different?

Yesterday Jyotiraditya Scindia MP from Guna had raised the issue in Lok Sabha and asked why the Madhya Pradesh government is illegally drowning the lakhs of people in Narmada Valley and forcefully evicting them without complete and just rehabilitation? Why the government is selectively picking excerpts from Supreme Court judgement and not following the spirit of the whole judgement? To which, Narendra Singh Tomar, the Panchayat Raj Minister replied and said that the Madhya Pradesh government is following the supreme court orders which says that the submergence area should be evicted by 31^st July and all the compliances have been done as per the orders. On one hand, Rajneesh Vaishya from Narmada Valley Development Authority, giving figures of 7010 families yet to be rehabilitated where as on the other hand Narendra Singh Tomar is claiming for complete rehabilitation. The different statements about the rehabilitation by State authorities has proved the realities of rehabilitation in Narmada Valley. Nobody knows the correct details, the whole government is playing the game of numbers with the oustees of Sardar Sarovar project.

This is a very big question as the Madhya Pradesh government is talking about development but for whom and at what cost? Madhya Pradesh doesn’t need electricity and Gujarat doesn’t need water anymore. Madhya Pradesh state is an electricity surplus state whereas Gujarat government have failed to plan for decentralized water storage system due to which the Gujarat is now facing the flood due to outburst of one of the overflowing canal cause the death of around 200 people in the state.

Bhagirath Dhangar, Sanobar Bi, Bala Yadav, Rohit Thakur, Anand Tomar
Contact : Madhuresh 9818905316, Rahul 9179617513, Himshi 9867348307