Vadchil Resettlement site, Maharashtra.
Kevalsingh Vasave, a firebrand full time activist of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) belongs to village Nimgavan, one of the 33 villages in Maharashtra which were submerged by the waters of the Sardar Sarovar dam. Kevalsingh along with many others was resettled in the Vadchil resettlement site in Maharashtra.
Kevalsingh’s two interviews together span almost 8 hours. He was interviewed twice, first in 2007-8 soon after his relocation to the Vadchil resettlement site and then again in 2012, several years later. In these interviews, Kevalsingh provides us with a full oral history of the entire Narmada struggle, and the subsequent submergence, displacement and rehabilitation.
In the short 3-minute excerpt below, Kevalsingh talks poignantly about the time the waters of the Narmada impounded by the dam entered and permanently inundated his home. The clip highlights the deep and unique bond that existed between the Narmada and the Adivasis who lived on her banks: for instance, even as the Narmada inundated his home, he worships the river and refuses to fault her saying clearly, that it was human folly that tied/choked/damned the river.
Kevalsingh’s full account is included in the book Ladha Narmadecha in Marathi (Rajhans Prakashan) which comprises the oral history of the movement as narrated by Keshavbhau Vasave and Kevalsingh Vasave with an introduction and extensive footnotes and references by Nandini Oza. The book is available at:
https://www.booksnama.com/book/3746/Ladha-Narmadecha
Ladha Narmadecha, has been translated into English and has been published by Orient BlackSwan in 2022. The book in English titled, The Struggle for Narmada- An Oral history of Narmada Bachao Andolan by Adivasi Leaders Keshavbhau and Kevalsingh Vasave, additionally has the timeline of the Sardar Sarovar Project from the time it was thought dams should be built on the River Narmada in the 1940s to the completion of the Sardar Sarovar Project in 2017. It also has a timeline of the Narmada Bachao Andolan and significant milestones of the struggle. Besides, it has a foreword by Dr. Indira Chowdhary. The book is available at:
https://www.amazon.in/Struggle-Narmada-History-Keshavbhau-Kevalsingh/dp/9354422977
This book has also been translated into Hindi, has been published by Rajkamal Prakashan and is available at:
Clip Duration:
00:03:03
Language:
Audio in Marathi, Subtitles in English
Subtitles can be switched on and off by clicking ‘CC’ button at the bottom right of the video