Thousands of villagers took out a march in Palamu district on Friday to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding compensation against their likely displacement by the North Koel Reservoir project. However, they were stopped midway, taken into custody by the police and released on Saturday. Mr. Modi laid the foundation for the project in Palamu on Saturday.
Led by former Jharkhand minister and local Congress leader Krishna Nand Tripathi, the villagers had embarked on the 60-km foot march on Friday from Mandal Dam to Chiyanki air strip. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was to land at Chiyanki air strip.
“We held our meeting inside the police station and were released on Saturday”, Mr Triptahi told The Hindu over phone. He said 1,600 families from 15 villages of Palamu and neighbouring districts would be displaced by the construction of the Mangal Dam. Some of the villages threatened by submergence are Chemo, Sanya, Kutku, Navarnagu, Madgadi, Polpol, Khura and Chapia.
“Our demand has three basic points: one, construct two other barrages under Mangal dam and prioritise distribution of water to the farmers of four districts of Jharkhand Palamu, Chatra, Garhwa and Latehar. Only then should it be distributed to neighboring districts of Gaya and Aurangabad in Bihar; second, provide resettlement to all those villagers who would be displaced; and third, provide jobs to them”, said former Congress MLA from Daltonganj Mr. Tripathi.
He said he had mailed his two-page petition to the office of the Prime Minister on January 2. “See our plight…. hundreds of families will be displaced and no one knows how those displaced will be resettled and how much time it will take,” said the Congress leader.
