Skip to main content

Statue of Unity Project: alliance against environment, life, livelihood of tribals

Work in progress for constructing Statue of Unity
By Rohit Prajapati*
“The Economic Times” on April 26, 2015 reported, “Tea sellers in India can have contrasting fortunes. While Narendra Modi who sold tea as a youngster has grown up to become the country’s prime minister, Ambalal Tadvi, 40, a tea seller from Gujarat’s Narmada District is staring at an uncertain future. His stall and the little bit of farm land will soon be taken up by the Statue of Unity Project, a 182-metre tall statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel along with tourism infrastructure coming up nearby.”
In March 2015, after the area for ‘Shreshtha (Bhrashta) Bharat Bhavan’, a three star hotel, which is coming up as part of Statue of Unity Project was cordoned off, the Government of Gujarat attempted to evict six families comprising 70 people from their homes, land and livelihoods. The terrorisation of the people reached a fever pitch on March 28, 2015 when six of the affected villagers and three children while registering their peaceful protest for not even receiving compensation for their “acquired” land were illegally arrested and held without proper food and facilities.
Now a police force stands guard 24x7 outside the newly raised gate through which the people have to pass in order to access their homes and land, turning their homes into in a veritable “Open Air Prison”. But this is only the most recent event in a long line of repression against the people’s democratic opposition to the controversial project. Harassment of activists and locals started right from the time of laying the foundation stone of the Statue of Unity (October 31, 2013), when they questioned the Gujarat government over not securing the requisite environmental clearance for the project. Rather than responding to the concerns raised, the government illegally arrested local tribals; some other activists were put under house arrest.
The strategy of the Gujarat government was to follow its routine practice of “preemptively” arresting local activists as and when any state or corporate function was organised. Indications are aplenty that this is just the beginning of the crackdown; in the coming years the Government will step up its offensive as conflicts mount over increasing number of tribals being forced to leave their tea shops, marginal landholdings, and ancestral homes to give way for this luxury tourism project and the “development” regime.
The eagerness with which the government wishes to somehow complete the project is evident in its willingness to sell off tribal land for a pittance; for example a December, 2014 Resolution of the Gujarat government clearly states: “Considering the security of Statue of Unity and Sardar Sarovar Dam if the need arise the remaining land for Garudeshwar weir can be bought at the rate of Rs 7,50,000 per hectare”. This price is a pittance compared to the market price for land in the region.
What is equally alarming is the fact that the Gujarat government has casually circumvented the entire legal mechanism for environmental and social impact assessment. Environmental clearance required under the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification of September 2006, has not been sought for any component of this elaborate tourism dream project.
What becomes abundantly clear from the official website (www.statueofunity.in), is that the statue project is not simply the construction of a “mute monument”. It is an elaborate Tourism Project which includes its principal component, a 182 meter-tall iron statue of Shri Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel built over a project area of more than 120,000 sq.mtrs. surrounded by a man-made lake (reservoir called Garudeshwar Weir); a bridge connecting the statute to the mainland; improved roadway between the Statue and Kevadia village; parking and transport site; and hotel and Convention Centre (Shreshtha Bharat Bhawan).
These project components are proposed to be constructed as part of Phase I of the Statue of Unity Project. Phase II of the Project will include the development of banks of River Narmada up to Bharuch District; development of road, rail and tourist infrastructure and tourism corridor from Garudeshwar to Bhadbhut. These are also part of the composite Statue of Unity Project, although the actual project area of this stretch of about 90 km has not yet been revealed to the general public.
A serious concern which has been disregarded is that the project site is located on an active tectonic plate in a fault line area which is already burdened with the load of the Sardar Sarovar Dam and its massive reservoir. The construction of the tourism project and other human activities after the completion of the project is bound to have adverse effects on the downstream river, its biodiversity, and the surrounding wetlands all of which has been ignored by the Gujarat government.
It is also pertinent that for the world’s tallest statue, the Gujarat government has not even engaged in a Social and Environment Impact Assessment which would shed light on the impact of the project and the resultant influx of migrant labourers and tourists on the livelihoods of the indigenous people who have been residing downstream of the project for generations. Surprisingly, the Gujarat government had allocated Rs 500 crore in the 2014-15 budget and Government of India also had allocated Rs 200 crore in the 2014-15 budget for the Statue of Unity Project by presuming that the Statue of Unity Project does not require environment clearance from the concerned authorities.
This was also confirmed by information received in response to our RTI application filed in June 2014 about the environment clearance. The concerned authority clearly states, “Environment Clearance is not required to be obtained; hence Environmental and Social Impact Assessment of the Statue of Unity Project and its contribution to the cumulative impact of all the projects and activities in the area is not carried out.”
The Statue of Unity Project will have a widespread impact on the existing infrastructure in the area, land use within a 20 km radius of the project site, flora, fauna, birds and aquatic life due to mechanical structures and lights, aquatic life due to dredging and disposal of dredging materials, surrounding communities due to land acquisition, fishing activity, the existing traffic network due to the influx of tourists and transportation of construction materials, and broadly the air, surface water, groundwater, air, biodiversity, noise and vibrations, socioeconomic status and public health.
Other impacts due to quarrying of stones and transportation and also emissions from DG Sets are also expected. The construction is bound to result in damage to the river, riverbed, downstream river, its biodiversity, its active water body, the people living downstream and their livelihoods. The project will also result in displacement of people from Kevadia Village and people of the other areas; the full extent of displacement is not yet known as the planned location of the project’s other components has not been made public.
While the Statue of Unity tourism project might be considered as a dream project, in reality, this project is nothing but a project which will rob the home, land and livelihood from the tribals, adversely affect the Narmada river, Shoolpaneshwar Sanctuary, biodiversity of the area, downstream river, and the ecology of the area.
The Gujarat government and Modi-led Central government think they can hide behind the 182 meter, towering Statue the full extent of environmental destruction that will be caused by the Statue project. Local citizen’s groups, social movements, democratic rights groups and concerned citizens have already begun tearing down the lies and exposing the casual nature by which the statutory authorities have abdicated their legal and procedural responsibilities as regards obtaining Environmental Clearance, public consultation, and Social Impact Assessment.
The statue is symbolic of the model of destructive development which the government is promoting. While evaluating the need for such tourism projects what is required is a holistic approach to development which focuses attention to issues relating to Human Development Index, the Multidimensional Poverty Index and the Composite Development Index. In the absence of such a holistic approach to development, the Modi government will have turned its back on the adivasis of Kevadia Village or the Gujarati “chai wallah” for good.
People are determined to fight back `terrorism of tourism’ and assert their fundamental right to live with dignity in their homelands.

*National organizing secretary, People’s Union Civil Liberties

Comments

TRENDING

Crucial to revisit roots, embrace core Hindu principles: love, compassion, harmony

A note on religious leaders'  Satya Dharam Samvad in Haridwar: *** In a groundbreaking gathering, more than 25 religious leaders including Swamis, Acharyas, Pujaris, Gurus, and Sadhvis from all over India convened to discuss the tenets of Hinduism on September 16th, 2023, in Haridwar, to discuss and discern the current trajectory of Hinduism. This brand new initiative, the Satya Dharam Samvad, was inspired to organize its first assembly in response to the December 2021 Dharma Sansad, where hate speech and calls for violence against the Muslim community contravened the essential principles of Hinduism. Religion is being used to incite riots among Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists, Jains, etc. In the face of such hatred, Swami Raghavendra felt that something meaningful should be done in the present climate. 

Maoist tendency of mechanically adhering to Chinese path ignores Indian conditions

By Harsh Thakor  The C.P.I. (Maoist) formed in 2004 with merger of the C.P.I. (M.L) Peoples War and the Maoist Communist Centre has demonstrated courage in intensity compared to any great revolutionary struggle in the history of the world. It leads the largest armed movement of a Peoples Guerrilla Army in the world today and proved themselves as the true torch bearers of the Indian Communist movement.

Significant step towards empowering and particularly engaging with informal workers

ActionAid note on drive to empower informal sector workers Odisha with the support of District Labour Department: *** The Odisha Unorganised Workers Social Security Board (OUWSSB) facilitated an Unorganized Workers Awareness Camp at the Red Cross Bhawan in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The event took place in collaboration with the District Labour Department at Khordha, Centre for Child and Women Development and ActionAid Association. This informative event aimed at empowering informal sector workers by disseminating crucial information regarding their eligibility for various social security schemes provided by the Government of Odisha.

Dev Anand ably acted as westernised, urban educated, modern hero, as also anti-hero

By Harsh Thakor  On September 26th we celebrated the birth centenary of legendary actor Dev Anand. Dev Saab carved out a new epoch or made a path breaking contribution in portraying romanticism and action in Bollywood cinema, giving his style or mannerisms a new colour. Arguably no Bollywood star manifested glamour in such a dignified or serene manner or struck the core of an audience’s soul in romantic melodies. Possibly we missed this evergreen star being cast in a Hollywood film. Dev Anand is like an inextinguishable soul of Bollywood. Although not as artistic or intense as Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor or Ashok Kumar ,Dev Anand surpassed them all for liveliness or flamboyance, with his performances radiating g energy on the screen, in realms rarely transcended. In his own right, Dev Saab, was a craftsman, like his classical contemporaries, with a characteristic composure. Perhaps never was a Bollywood star so suave, bubbling or charming as Dev Anand, who often looked like an Indian versi

We need to resurrect Neruda, give birth to poets of his kind amidst neofascist rampage

By Harsh Thakor  On 23rd September we commemorate the 50th death anniversary of Pablo Neruda, whose contribution to revolutionary poetry was path breaking. Pablo Neruda’s poetry manifested the spiritual essence of revolutionary poetry and how poetry was a weapon for a revolutionary struggle. The story of his life illustrated the spiritual transformation undergone a human being to transform him into a revolutionary and how environment shapes the lie of revolutionary.

Grassroots NGO enlightens people of Kupwara with intricacies of Right to Information

J&K RTI Foundation and Founder Civil Rights Movement Kupwara note on how RTI Pend is empowering Kupwara with insights on Right to Information Act: *** RTI Pend, the grassroots initiative aimed at democratizing access to information, hosted its 2nd event in Kupwara. On the request of the Civil Rights Movement Kupwara, this event was tailored to enlighten the people of Kupwara with the intricacies of the Right to Information Act, presented in their local language and dialects. The event successfully bridged both offline and online participation, addressing queries on the spot and offering applicants practical solutions.

Abrogation of Art 370: Increasing alienation, relentless repression, simmering conflict

One year after the abrogation by the Central Government of Art. 370 in Kashmir, what is the situation in the Valley. Have the promises of peace, normalcy and development been realised? What is the current status in the Valley? Here is a detailed note by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties , “Jammu & Kashmir: One Year after Abrogation of Art. 370: Increasing Alienation, Relentless Repression, Simmering Conflict”:

Agro-biodiversity through seed identification, conservation, replication, crop selection

By Kuntal Mukherjee, Basant Yadav, Shivnath Yadav* This article is mainly based on a journey of the three of us since 2010 based on field experience, study of different articles, reflective journeys with local community based organisations, villagers and practitioners in Chhattisgarh. The slow growth of Agriculture in India with near stagnation in productivity since mid ‘80s in contrast to the remarkable growth during the green revolution period has come to the front as a great concern. In post WTO era Indian Agriculture has been witnessing structural changes, uncontrolled influx of agriculture goods and commodities from foreign countries due to open market nature. The gradual reduction in subsidies from internal production leads to increasing cost of production of agriculture produces at the farm gate. It causes gradual decrease in internal production as well as productivity and posing threats to small farm and stakeholders. 

Why Govt of India, Sangh Parivar want to stop the use of ‘India’? What's in a name?

By Ram Puniyani  Coincidentally after the opposition parties came together to form INDIA (Indian National Democratic Inclusive Alliance), the ruling BJP is desisting from the use of word India in official communiqués and its parent organizations RSS has issued a fatwa that only word Bharat should be used for our country. While inviting the representative’s participants of G 20, the President issued the invitation in the name of ‘Rashtrapati of Bharat’. Since then BJP is on the track of avoiding the use of the word India in all its pronouncements, saying this word smacks of colonial legacy since this word was given to the country by British colonial rulers. Mr. Hemant Biswa Sarma of BJP said that word India is part of the colonial legacy and should be removed. RSS chief and other functionaries have intensified this message. Speaking at a function at Guwahati Mr. Bhagwat, stated “We must stop using the word India and start using Bharat. At times we use India to make those who speak Eng

Sewer workers not given ESI cards that would ensure health benefits they need the most

A note by the Dalit Adivasi Shakti Adhikar Manch (DASAM), an organization working for the issues of sanitation workers in Delhi NCR, on right to life and dignity which still seems light years away for sewer workers: *** Exploitation of Sewer workers is not just a labour issue, but it is rooted in the caste system and cannot be separated from the historical socio-religious-cultural-economic exploitation of the Dalit community! Stated Mr. Y.S. Gill, Senior Journalist and Documentary Film maker in the press conference organised by Dalit Adivasi Shakti Adhikar Manch (DASAM) in Integrated Social Initiatives (ISI), Lodhi Road, New Delhi on issues of sewer workers in Delhi. The press conference was attended by a number of community members, activists, members of the civil society, students etc.