MP power project threatens to submerge more villages

After claiming 700-year old Harsood town for its 1,000 MW Indira Sagar project three years ago, Narmada Hydroelectric Development Corporation (NHDC) today created panic among villagers of Khandwa district by issuing a public notice in a section of the media, warning them to stay away from their farm land, which is soon to be submerged in the backwaters of 520-Mw Omkareshwar project.

The Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) will file a modification petition on a recent Supreme Court order allowing NHDC to close sluice-gates of the project although the project is ahead of schedule.

NHDC today released a public notice warning villagers of Sailani, Bakhatgarh, Palri, Rampura, Sukwa, Ekhand, Godarpura, Gogalgaon, Toki, Kelwa Bujurg and Bilaya that the sluice-gates of the project would be closed to fill the reservoir up to 189 metres, following a respite from Supreme Court recently, although the apex court had asked the NHDC, the NBA and the state government to settle the issue before the Jabalpur high court on June 19.

Last month the Jabalpur High Court had barred the NHDC, a joint venture of the Madhya Pradesh government and National Hydropower Corporation (NHPC), from filling the reservoir till the completion of resettlement and rehabilitation of the affected people, roughly 5,000 families, after hearing a petition filed by the NBA.

"We will file a modification petition before Supreme Court tomorrow. The district administration has cut power connections of Gogalgaon and Ekhand villages and has sent police to serve notices of eviction. The villagers are in panic. The state government is misleading even the Supreme Court. If the R&R has been completed, why have they severed power connections of villages and sent police," an activist said.

District Collector Sanjay Goyal was not available for comment.

Speaking to Business Standard, Sanjay Mukharia, general manager (R&R), NHDC, said the sluice gates had been closed.

"A total of 4,153 families were to be shifted. Of those, 2,900 have been shifted. None lives in the affected area. We have closed sluice gates and are expecting to fill the reservoir till 189 metres by July 3. We have paid compensation to the villagers," Mukharia said.

"Those who opted for our 10 rehabilitation sites have been allotted residential plots and those who skipped our rehabilitation sites and resettled at on own have been paid Rs 20,000 against each plot," he said.

A statement from the Narmada Valley Development Authority (NVDA), a nodal agency of the state government on rehabilitation, also confirmed the closure of sluice gates and said the (reservoir) would attain a height of 189 metres.

"The full reservoir limit is 196 metres but we will not go beyond 189 meters," Uday Verma, vice-chairman (NVDA), told Business Standard.