Celebrating his 67th birthday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted to India the Sardar Sarovar dam, a mega-project constructed on Narmada river. It is expected the change lives in Gujarat. As the ruling Bharatya Janta Party leans on water as a crucial vote churner in the upcoming state elections, Modi fired shots at the Congress and Narmada Bachao Andolan.
Refraining from taking names, Modi said, “No other project in the world has faced as many hurdles as the Sardar Sarovar Dam, but we were determined to complete the project on our own. There was a tirade of false allegations at us and several conspiracies were hatched to stall this project. But we were determined not to make it a tool for political disputes.” Addressing a rally in Dabhoi, 60 km from Kevadiya where he formally dedicated the 138.68 metre dam to India, Modi took a swipe at the Opposition saying the project always hit roadblocks when the ruling government gave more importance to their party than the nation.
'I have a detailed account of all those who tried to stall this project, but I will not name them as I don't want to indulge in political mudslinging,” Modi said. He recalled how the World Bank turned its back on the project, after a massive misinformation campaign was led on the dam's environmental impact. “But we were determined... World Bank or no World Bank... we will ensure that the dam is built,” he said.
Talking about waters from Narmada reaching Rajasthan, Modi said, “Then vice-president Bhairon Singh Shekhawat and BJP leader Jaswant Singh were surprised how water from Sardar Sarovar Dam had reached Barmer without any agitation or struggle. Whenever people who considered nation above their (political party) have a chance to rule, Narmada project has progressed. But whenever those who considered party more important than country were in power, there have been numerous hurdles in the project.” The PM has been passionate about the project since his earlier days as chief minister of Gujarat. He had even gone on a 51-hour fast to mount pressure on the Congress-led UPA government, in 2006, for permission to increase the height of the dam.
Decades-worth of controversies
Envisioned by the country's first deputy prime minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, founding stone of the Sardar Sarovar project was laid by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru on April 5, 1961. Dispute over the project ensued after a report was prepared over means of distributing the Narmada water among Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Madhya Pradesh. After negotiations reached a dead end, the Narmada Water Dispute Tribunal was established in 1969.
The NWDT studied multiple reports and studies made by the three states, and gave its verdict in 1979. It was decided that of the 35 billion cubic metres of water available for consumption from the dam, Madhya Pradesh would receive 65 per cent, Gujarat 32 per cent, and Rajasthan and Maharashtra would be eligible for the remaining 3 per cent. The Planning Commission finally approved the project in 1988.
As the project was undergoing construction, social activists found the dam did not meet the required environmental and social conditions as shown by the Ministry of Environment and Forests. One of the first to raise their voices was Medha Patkar who first visited the site in 1985. Several activists, including Arundhati Roy, and Baba Amte protested against the project, prompting the World Bank to conduct a review. A bank commissioned panel concluded that inadequate assessment had been made by the Indian government and the World Bank prior to sanctioning the project, cancelled its authorised loan to the Indian government.
The current height of the dam has been raised to 138.68 metres with a usable storage of 4.73 million acre feet of water. While inaugurating the dam, PM Modi performed Narmada aarti and offered prayers at the site. “There have been many who politicised the construction of the Sardar Sarovar Dam. But we overcame all conspiracies against Maa Narmada to complete the Sardar Sarovar project,” he said.
