Medha Patkar to launch stir against filling of Sardar Sarovar Dam

Narmada Bachao Andolan leader Medha Patkar on Friday announced launching an indefinite agitation against the Gujarat government's proposed plan to fill Sardar Sarovar Dam to its Full Reservoir Level (FRL).

She claimed that as many as 45,000 families will be affected if the dam across Narmada in Gujarat is filled to FRL as planned by the Gujarat government.

"According to our estimate, Sardar Sarovar Dam is filled up to more than 122 metres now. But the



government wants to close the dam's sluice gates to fill it up to 139 metres," Ms Patkar said during a press conference here.

"If the (Gujarat) government has its way, 45,000 families in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra will face the problem of submergence (of houses and lands)," she claimed.

NBA would launch an indefinite agitation from tomorrow at Rajghat area in Barwani district in Madhya Pradesh against the government's plan, she said.