Rally by Narmada's children

By Our Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI, AUG. 21.

``Kursi ki rajniti hai, Panch saal ka raj hai, Baandh phir ho na ho, Apna apna rona hai'' (It's politics to attain power and to rule for five years; Dam or no dam). India Gate this evening echoed with slogans of tribal children who once lived on the banks of the Narmada.

These 70-odd tribal children, students of the Narmada Bachao Andolan-run ``Jeevan Shalas'', accompanied by Andolan activists and school teachers, are here to ``seek justice'' from the President, Mr. K.R. Narayanan.

Their ``Jeevan Yatra'' against death and destruction, which began from Kasravat in Madhya Pradesh with the blessings of noted activist Baba Amte, on August 16, culminated here with the pledge to meet the President and request him to ``help them urgently''.

En route, the activists, who represent children of 245 villages affected by the Sardar Sarovar Project, visited major towns in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, including Indore, Bhopal and Gwalior where they met school children and took out rallies to sensitise people.

``After being cheated in the name of rehabilitation where we got nothing but consolation, they now want to end our education project at `Jeevan Shalas'. The schools are being threatened by rising water levels ever since the dam's height was raised from 85 metres to 93 metres,'' said an NBA activist, Ms. Yogini Khanolkar, who also teaches in one of the 11 ``Jeevan Shalas''.

They are here to request Mr. Narayanan to visit displaced villagers and also those outsees who are being again uprooted with the raising of dam's height. ``A recent report on rehabilitation work exposed how land distributed in the name of rehabilitation was either of no use or existed just on paper,'' added Ms. Khanolkar.

Nimji, a Class VI student at ``Jeevan Shala'' in Manibeli, is shattered. With moist eyes he complains, ``After uprooting us from our original village on the banks of the Narmada, we will again have to move to a new place as the present area where we had started living will get submerged. I lost my home, my fertile land, my peace of mind. When will our miseries end?'' he asked.

Similar is the tale, be it Tadviyal Singh of Nimgohan or Baili of Jalsindhi (Madhya Pradesh). They want that at least their basic right of getting educated should be safeguarded. ``We are here till August 25 and will not leave without meeting the President'' they said.

The absence of Ms. Medha Patkar, has not damped their spirits. ``Didi is currently staging a `satyagrah' at Kasravat (Madhya Pradesh), the village which is slowing getting submerged. We are not alone her blessings and moral strength are with us,'' asserted Ms. Khanolkar.

These kids are not alone in the Capital either. This was evident from the presence of personalities like Mr. Kuldip Nayar, Mr. Surendra Mohan, Swami Agnivesh, Ms. Mohini Giri, Mr.Justice Rajender Sachar, and their staunch supporter, Ms. Arundhati Roy, who all cheered the small activists and pledged solidarity with them.

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