The Hindu : Opinion / Letters to the Editor : Narmada issue

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Friday, Apr 14, 2006

Opinion

Opinion - Letters to the Editor

Narmada issue

The Government seems bent on dragging its feet on the decision to halt further construction of the Narmada dam.

As one who has time and again got false assurances, Medha Patkar has no other option but to continue her fast.

Chandralekha Roy,
New Delhi

The crusade Ms. Patkar is leading symbolises the contradictions existing in Indian society since independence. Dams, as many studies have shown, bring more disadvantages than advantages. Statistics show that they have not achieved the target envisaged by policy makers. It is time to think of viable alternatives to dams.

H.R. Jayapal,
Dharwad, Karnataka

The Sardar Sarovar is a monumental structure bestowing huge benefits to the people at large.

The contention that the NBA is a great mass movement is strange. Only a minuscule percentage of the Indian population supports the NBA, which is anti-development. People need water!

K.V. Rupchand,
Chennai

The people who criticise protests such as the NBA as opposed to all development programmes should bear in mind that no development is achieved at the cost of others, more importantly the weaker sections.

Amarendra Das,
Thiruvananthapuram

As Mahatma Gandhi said, it is a sin to suffer injustice in silence. May Ms. Patkar recover and live long to continue serving the people — real India.

The Government's attitude is no different from that of the British towards the Mahatma. By closing the doors on all reasonable debate on facts and genuine grievances of the people, it has forced the agitation. And then it labels it coercive, undemocratic, blackmail, anti-development and so on.

Trilochan Sastry,
Bangalore

The Narmada project is a good test case for the UPA's commitment to its poll promise of development with a human face. There is no better place to start than the Narmada Valley.

The Government should appoint a commission to oversee the resettlement project, and not allow further work till it has signed off the resettlement project. It should place all future dam projects under the review jurisdiction of the independent commission, and take disciplinary action against any government official violating court orders with respect to the Narmada project.

Akshay Kaul,
London

The Government's callous attitude should not surprise those who follow the history of the Congress party. As soon as India got freedom, Mahatma Gandhi was sidelined and his call to abolish the party ignored. His principles were completely abandoned. How else is one to understand Nehru's dilly-dallying on the free state of Andhra demand till the death of Potti Sriramulu?

The Congress leadership has long moved away from the Mahatma's principles and it cannot be moved an inch by Gandhian ways of protest.

Sannapareddy Krishna Reddy,
Nellore, A.P.

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