Medha Patkar leads protests in Bhopal

BHOPAL: Hundreds of villagers from the Narmada valley staged a sit-in protest at the Narmada Bhavan, the headquarters of the Narmada Valley Development Authority at Arera Hills on Saturday.

They demanded proper compensation, a 34-year-old demand that has still not been considered by the government, the villagers alleged.

The agitators reminded the government of the ‘unjust’ displacement of thousands of villagers two months back when the mighty Sardar Sarovar dam was filled to its capacity (138.68 metres) by Gujarat . Medha Patkar of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), who has been leading the villagers, held a long meeting with the senior government officials on Saturday.

“After the dam was filled to its capacity, 30,000 families in Dhar, Badwani, Khargone and Alirajpur were displaced and farm fields, temples mosques and government offices were submerged. People were still living there since they were not given compensation”, Patkar said.

“We will be camping here in the open and will wait for the government orders till Monday’, the activist said.

With facts and figures, she told the government officials that villagers were displaced without any rehabilitation. “Besides, the government stopped food and fodder for families and cattle displaced by the backwaters of Narmada”, Patkar said.

On Saturday night, the villagers were seen cooking meals and singing bhajans under the open sky near the NVDA office. Earlier, the villagers were stopped at Yadgar-e-Shahjahani park and were not allowed to reach the Narmada Bhavan. tnn