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dam-l Govt. of India to counter anti Dam "Propaganda" at Hague. (fwd)
Subject: Govt. of India to counter anti Dam "Propaganda" at Hague.
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Source: Hindustan Times, March 10, 2000
Govt to counter anti-dam propaganda
Hemendra Singh Bartwal (New Delhi, March 9)
CONCERNED AT the adverse international publicity it has
attracted on the issue of Sardar Sarovar
Project (SSP), the Government is now planning to go on
the offensive to counter the anti-dam
activists? ?propaganda? at world fora and highlight its
own stand on the matter.
Accordingly, a high-profile delegation of the Indian
Government, led by Water Resources Minister C P
Thakur himself, will head for The Hague in the
Netherlands next week where it will put up a strong
defence of its position at the prestigious World Water
Forum meet. Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA)
leader Medha Patkar is slated to present the anti-dam
viewpoint.
?We are going to fight it out. Point by point, we will
reply to the objections raised by Ms Patkar and her
supporters against the SSP and explain to the world
where
they are wrong in their perceptions. The
Minister has decided to take an aggressive stand as he
feels that this Ministry has so far never been
able to convey the actual position on the dam issue to
the people at large,? said a senior official of the
Water Resources Ministry.
Several top officials of the Ministry will be
accompanying Mr Thakur to the meet and the team has made
elaborate preparations to present a strong case in
support of the project which has been long delayed
due to staunch opposition from the NBA and other
environmental activists.
Such is the significance being attached to the event
that
a separate official delegation is being sent to it
by the Government of Gujarat, where the Sardar Sarovar
dam is located. This will be headed by state
Irrigation Minister Jainarain Vyas.
The government delegations will strive to clear
?misconcepts? and wrong notions about the project. It
will emphasise before the gathering of international
experts the fact that beside the developmental
benefits accruing from it by way of irrigation and
power
generation , its early completion was also vital
for supply of drinking water to drought-hit areas of
Rajasthan and Saurashtra and Kutch in Gujarat.
During the four-day deliberations at the meet which
begins from March 16, presentations will be made
by eminent experts, environmentalists, non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) and officials from
various countries on different issues related to water
resources management, including its social and
environmental impact.
Their recommendations will be further discussed at a
high-level inter-ministerial meet on March 21 and
22, an official said. During this, Dr Thakur will raise
the SSP dam issue and its ramifications.
Among the prominent members of the Indian delegation
will
be Minister of State for Water Resources
Bijoya Chakravarty, Water Resources Secretary Z. Hasan
and the chairman of the National Water
Development Authority P. Lau.
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