PTI
 
New Delhi, Apr 18: NBA leader Medha Patkar on Monday called off her 20-day-old hunger strike.

Two more NBA activists Jamsing Nargavekar and Bhagwati Patidar, who too had been on fast with Patkar, also ended their strike.

NBA activist Pinjari Bai offered a glass of lime juice to Patkar in the presence of host of civil society and political leaders including CPI General Secretary A B Bardhan and Swami Agnivesh.

SC threatens to stop Narmada dam work

PTI 
  
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday threatened to stop work on the construction of the dam on river Narmada if the states in the river basin do not carry out the rehabilitation of the displaced people in the true letter and spirit of an earlier judgement.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal directed all the concerned parties to file reply to the petition filed by the Narmada Bachao Andolan and the application moved by the Centre on the issue within a week.

The Apex court said that the rejoinder shall be filed within a week there after and posted the matter for further hearing on May one before a regular Bench of three judges.

The court clarified during the pendency of these matters it would not preclude the Centre to take steps to resolve the controversy in accordance with the judgement of this court.

Narendra Modi calls off hunger strike

PTI  
 
Ahmedabad: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Monday called off hunger strike in view of the Supreme Court decision not to grant a stay in increasing the height of the Sardar Sarovar dam.

Modi, who had embarked on a 51-hour fast in support of increasing the height of the dam made an announcement on the second day of his strike.

Modi also said the construction work on Narmada river would go on side by side with effective rehabilitation of the affected people.

The Gujarat Chief Minister had resorted to hunger strike since on Sunday at the Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (GMDC) ground, protesting the recommendation of Union Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz to suspend work on the project until rehabilitation of dam oustees was done in a satisfactory manner. 

Narmada to usher in new era of brutality: Arundhati 

PTI
 
New Delhi: Accusing the government of providing "lip service" on rehabilitation of Sardar Sarovar Project oustees, author Arundhati Roy on Monday said continuance of construction on the Narmada dam would usher in a "new era of brutality."

"What we are seeing now is that we are entering a new ear of brutality, which is not concerned with the Narmada Bachao Andolan or issues of displacements across the country.

"The NBA for the last 20 years approached every single institutional democratic body," Roy said.

"If indeed the Supreme Court orders the dam construction be continued and continue to — what you call — lip service on rehabilitation ... the only difference then an now is that earlier NBA was saying rehabilitation is not happening, now it is the government that is saying it is not happening," she told NDTV.

"Now it has been established by the governments own team that rehabilitation is not happening ... so if indeed the Supreme Court orders the dam to continue, the government as clearly washed its hands off it," she said.

"This is the last port of call ... the door is going to be slammed in their face ... the poor of the country are already deciding why they are taking up arms all over Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Jharkahnd," Roy said.

"... Things are going to get completely out of hand because this is going to be challenged by the people of India on the streets," she said.

She claimed that the Gujarat government was not able to use the water of the Narmada dam as the canals for distribution were not ready.