The Late Shanta (Ben) Yadav

Shantaben Yadav is a key woman leader of the Narmada Bachao Andolan  (NBA). She has played a very important role in the movement including undertaking an indefinite fast during the Long March of the NBA at Gujarat-Madhya Pradesh border at Ferkuva, in the year 1990-91.

In this clip from her longer interview, Shantaben describes in detail how the Late Padma Vibhushan Baba Amte moved from his home at Anandvan in Maharashtra to come and stay on the Narmada banks in the year 1990. Baba threw his might behind the NBA and began to stay on the Narmada banks in the submergence village Kasravad in Madhya Pradesh and made it his home. He declared, “I shall drown but not move” and that the government should scrap the Sardar Sarovar Project. An iconic figure like Baba Amte, a Magsaysay awardee and an internationally acclaimed figure, joining the NBA, naturally gave a tremendous boost to the NBA and the people and the movement gained tremendous national and international attention. With Baba Amte residing in the village, which was one of the 245 villages in the submergence zone of the SSP, Kasravad itself became one of the main centres of the NBA. But because of this Kasravad and its people were also subjected to unprecedented repression by the State government which wanted the Sardar Sarovar dam to be built at any cost. It became therefore very important for the government to breach the unity of the people in Kasravad which had become a prominent centre of the NBA. Not only the village people but even Baba Amte and his wife Late Sadhana Tai were subjected to continual harassment, particularly during the time when Sunderlal Patwa of the Bharatiya Janata Party was Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. Nevertheless, Baba Amte and Sadhana Tai, in spite of their failing health and advanced age, continued to live and struggle in Kasravad as part of the NBA braving all odds.

Shantaben also describes the events leading to Baba Amte, after a stay of more than ten years, leaving Kasravad and returning to Anandvan in Maharashtra. More importantly, she explains the impact that Baba’s departure had on the people of the Narmada valley and how the government, particularly the then Chief Minister Digvijay Singh of the Indian National Congress,  succeeded in using this incident against the movement. She describes how false propaganda and accusations were spread throughout the valley, the state repression that followed and explains why people fell for cash compensation which broke the social fabric that held the submergence villages together in their resistance. 

This interview also underlines the fact that while a people’s movement may get a tremendous boost when an iconic figure joins it, the departure of such a figure from the movement can deal an irreparable blow to the struggle, particularly if not handled collectively and delicately.

Clip Duration: 00:36:52

Language: Audio in Nimadi, Subtitles in English

Subtitles can be switched on and off by clicking ‘CC’ button at the bottom right of the video