The Narmada ( नर्मदा) River is the only river in India that flows in a rift valley and flows in central India between North India and South India. Narmada river rising in Madhya Pradesh state that runs from east to west along with the Tapti River and the Mahi River. Narmada flows over a length of 1,312 km before draining through the Gulf of Cambey (Khambat) into the Arabian Sea, 30 km west of Bharuch city of Gujarat. The Narmada River has a huge water resources potential for agriculture and economy of the region. More than 90% of water flow occurs during the monsoon months of June to September.
The Narmada river is considered extremely holy by the Hindus
गंगे च यमुने चैव गोदावरि सरस्वति |
नर्मदे सिन्धुकाबेरि जलेऽस्मिऩ सन्निधिं कुरु ||
The most sacred rivers of India are River Ganga (गंगा), River Yamuna (यमुना), Godavari ( गोदावरी) River , Sarswati, Narmada, Sindhu and Kaveri, a dip in any of these rivers washes ones sins away.. The dams on Narmada river benefits the four Indian states Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan that include provision for drinking water, power generation and irrigation facilities.
Source of Narmada River
The source of the Narmada is a small tank called Narmada Kund located on the Amarkantak hill, in the Anuppur District of eastern Madhya Pradesh. From the Amarkantak hill range the river descends at the Kapildhara falls over a cliff and meanders in the hills flowing through the rocks and islands up to the ruined palace of Ramnagar.
Amarkantak is 71 Kms. from Anupppur, an important railway junction of the South Eastern Central Railway. Amarkantak is at a distance of 320 Kms. from Jabalpur and 265 Kms. from Rewa by road and around 100 Kms. from Shahdol. The nearest railway station from Amarkantak is Pendra, which is 65 Kms. from Amarkantak. Pendra is in Bilaspur of Chhatisgarh.
Narmada River in plains
The river rises on the summit of Amarkantak Hill in Madhya Pradesh state .It traverses the first 320 kilometres course around the Mandla Hills, which form the head of the Satpura Range; then moves towards Jabalpur passing through the `Marble Rocks`, it enters the Narmada Valley between the Vindhya and Satpura ranges, and moves westwards towards the Gulf of Cambay. It flows through the states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat, and finally meets the Arabian Sea in the Bharuch District of Gujarat.
Narmada River flows through the states of Madhya Pradesh 1,077 km (669.2 miles), Maharashtra, 74 km (46.0 miles)), 35 km (21.7 miles) border between Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra and 39 km (24.2 miles) border between Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat and in Gujarat 161 km (100.0 miles)).
Narmada Bachao Andolan
Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) is a peoples organisation that mobilised tribal people, adivasis, farmers, environmentalists and human rights activists against the Sardar Sarovar Dam being built across the Narmada river, Gujarat. The Andolan (campaign) includes hunger strikes and garnering support from noted film and art personalities together with its leading spokespersons Medha Patkar and Baba Amte.
In 1985, after hearing about the Sardar Sarovar dam, Medha Patkar and her colleagues visited the project site and noticed the project work being shelved due to an order by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. The reasons for this was cited as "non-fulfillment of basic environmental conditions and the lack of completion of crucial studies and plans". What she noticed was that the people who were going to be affected were given no information, but for the offer for rehabilitation.
Medha Patkar approached the Ministry of Environment to seek clarifications. She realized, after seeking answers from the ministry, that the project was not sanctioned at all, and wondered as to how funds were even sanctioned by the World Bank. Patkar quit her studies and focus entirely on the Narmada activity. Thereafter, she organized a 36-day long, solidarity march among the neighboring states of the Narmada valley from Madhya Pradesh to the Sardar Sarovar dam site.
Medha Patkar established Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) in 1989, all other groups joined this national coalition of environmental and human rights activists, scientists, academics and project-affected people with a non-violent approach. Medha Patkar advised also World Bank to their propaganda. Using the right to fasting, she undertook a 22 day fast that almost took her life. In 1991, her actions led to an unprecedented independent review by the World Bank. The Morse Commission, appointed in June 1991 at the recommendation of The World Bank conducted its first independent review of a World Bank project. Due to the review of World Bank the Indian Government pulling out of its loan agreement with the World Bank.
In 1994, the Bachao Andolan office was attacked reportedly by a couple of political parties, where Patkar and other activists were physically assaulted and verbally abused. In protest, a few NBA activists and she began a fast and 20 days later, they were arrested and forcibly fed intravenously.Patkar led Narmada Bachao Andolan had filed a written petition with the Supreme Court of India seeking stoppage of construction on the Sardar Sarovar dam. The Supreme Court also deliberated on this issue further for several years but finally upheld the Tribunal Award and allowed the construction to proceed, subject to conditions.
The Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) on 27 July 2011 suffered a set-back after the Supreme Court rejected its plea for land for the landless displaced by construction of a dam for providing irrigation facilities to farmers in Khargone district in Madhya Pradesh. The NBA wanted dierction to the Madhya Pradesh government to allot two hectares of land to each of the ousted families as part of a relief andrehabilitation package for those affected by the Upper Veda Project on
Veda river in the district.
The apex court bench of Justice J.M. Panchal, Justice Deepak Verma and Justice B.S. Chauhan in their judgment said that it did not find any "cogent reason" in the demand for allotment of agricultural land to the landless oustees affected by the submergence of the dam affected area. The court said that "contention is devoid of merit".
Speaking for the bench, Justice Chauhan said: "Neither it (land to landless oustees) had ever been contemplated nor it is compatible with the policy. Nor has such a land ever been allotted to this class of persons. The contention is hereby rejected."
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