Narmada Bachao Andolan
The mode of campaign under NBA includes court actions, hunger strikes, rallies and gathering support from notable film and art personalities.
[1] After India's independence in 1947, under the newly formed government headed by Jawaharlal Nehru, investigations were carried out to evaluate mechanisms for using water from the Narmada River,[2] which flows into the Arabian Sea after passing through the states of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat.
[4] On 12 December 1979, after ten years of investigation, the decision as given by the tribunal, with all the parties at dispute binding to it, was released by the Indian government.
[10] Thereafter, she organized a 36-day solidarity march among the neighboring states of the Narmada valley from Madhya Pradesh to the Sardar Sarovar dam site.
[13] In 1994, the Narmada Bachao Andolan office was attacked reportedly by a couple of political parties, and Patkar and other activists were physically assaulted and verbally abused.
[18] Narmada Bachao Andolan was also joined by several NGOs with local people, professionals, and activists as the founders with a non-violent approach.
[24] In 1985, irrespective of the harm done by the Sardar Sarovar project, the World bank sanctioned a loan to the state governments for construction purposes.
[25] The Bank did ask for a proper resettlement design but also said, "The argument in favour of the Sardar Sarovar Project is that the benefits are so large that they substantially outweigh the costs of the immediate human and environmental disruption.
[27] Amongst the major celebrities who have shown their support for Narmada Bachao Andolan are Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy[28] and Aamir Khan.
[29] It was also supported by music composer and bass guitarist in the band Indian Ocean, Rahul Ram, who was actively involved in the movement from 1990 to 1995.
Bihar CM Nitish Kumar participated in rally organised by NBA on the bank of Narmada at Rajghat on 16 September 2016.
Expressing solidarity with the Andolan Mr. Nitish Kumar said "I have come from Patna to extend support to the agitation on the side of river Narmada here".
[33] Supporting the NBA's main demand CM Nitish Kumar appealed to PM Mr Modi at Rajghat saying "Pradhan Mantri ji, don't close the gates of Sardar Sarovar Dam.
[34] The court ruled for Andolan, effecting an immediate stoppage of work at the dam and directing the concerned states to complete the rehabilitation and replacement process.
The court introduced a mechanism to monitor the progress of resettlement pari passu with the raising height of the dam through the Grievance Redressal Authorities (GRA) in each party state.
Instead of 'damning the dam' any longer, it could assume the role of vigilant observer to see that the resettlement work is as humane and painless as possible and that the environmental aspects are taken due care of.
"[37]Medha Patkar continues to fight for proper rehabilitation of the displaced people in Madhya Pradesh as well as the reception of the promised compensation by the Narmada Tribunal.
The Indian government has often argued that the cost of displacements are outweighed by the benefit derived from the Narmada Project, and thus, justified its construction.
Critics argue that the dam's benefits include the provision of drinking water, power generation, and irrigation facilities.
[40][41] There had also been instances of the NBA activists turning violent and attacking rehabilitation officer from Narmada Valley Development Authority (NVDA), which caused damage to the contractor's machinery.
