NBA kicks off vet
another ‘satyagraha’
About
a 1,000 men and women, including young children, from over 50 villages
in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat made their way through the
muck and gathered at Domkhedi and Jalsindhi on Saturday to participate
in the NBA-sponsored satyagraha against what it termed as "unjust submergence"
of villages.
The gathering reiterated
its "mission" to face submergence if alternative rehabilitation sites
were not provided to people affected by the Sardar Sarovar Project.
To mark their presence
and reiterate their resolve, the villagers nailed nameplates of the
villages on a tree at satyagraha site in Domakhedi. Children among the
lot included those of Narmada Jeevanshala, non-formal education school
run by the Narmada Bachao Andolan.
NBA leader Medha Patkar
said, after inauguration of the satyagraha at Domkhedi, that
they still stand by their earlier resolve to do "jalsamarpan" if the
dam height was increased without total review of the project. The NBA
had first started the monsoon-long satyagrahas from Manibeli in 1991.
Last year Ms Patkar and
other PAPs had to be forcibly taken out by tile police when they refused
to move even under neck-deep water.
After roping in Arundhati
Roy into the "mission," the NBA invited Navy chief L Ramdas to kick
off the satyagraha this time around. Mr Ramdas said he was convinced
that big dams were obsolete in development and concept. "People should
not be displaced from their rich and fertile land," he said.
"This war is different
from that of Kargil. It is war against injustice and is bound to win
against all odds," said Admiral Ramdas to add strength to people coming
from Manibeli, Danel, Bamni, Bharad, Pipalchowk, Nimgavan, Kundia, Kadmal
and other villages. His wife Lalita Ramdas also participated in the
function organised to kick off the satyagraha.
The NBA’s new slogan -
"Sardar Sarovar nahi hai jawab, bade bandho ke juthe hai khwaab (Sardar
Sarovar is not the answer, it’s misplaced illusion) - was prominently
displayed along with the NBA’s blue flag.
And as supporters from
Kerala and United Kingdom rose to make their representations, slogans
like "The fight from Kerala to Narmada" and "The fight from United Kingdom
to Narmada" echoed in the air.
"I will prefer to die here.
Where will I go? The Maharashtra government has no land," Bholiabhai
Mundya of Domkhedi told this correspondent.
Although he still has two
plots of land left, Mundya is certainly upset about his six acres that
has already submerged. His submerged land is now the docking place for
boats, he said.
A prayer to river Narmada
and immersion of "dam demon" marked the end of the opening day of the
satyagraha. Various programmes like youth camp, peace day, martyrs’
day and the Independence Day will be celebrated during the satyagraha.
