Submergence Village: Domkhedi, Maharashtra
Dedlibai has been one of the key adivasi leaders of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA). Her village Domkhedi is one of the 33 villages in the submergence zone of the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP) in the state of Maharashtra. Dedlibai’s contribution to the NBA has been phenomenal spanning several responsibilities, right from mobilisation of the women in the remote adivasi villages affected by the SSP, to representing the NBA before government functionaries and committees. Dedlibai’s interview here is unique as she narrates her own role as well as how the adivasi women of the Narmada valley, with no formal education, belonging to villages where electricity never came and roads were built by the state only to displace the thousands of adivasi families, fought for their right to life
“Our tongue was our only weapon”, Dedlibai a leader of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), sums up the non-violent struggle of the people on the banks of the River Narmada for their right to life against development induced displacement in this one profound and reflective statement. Being a woman leader and an affected person herself, she also talks about the reasons behind why women became an important part of the struggle against the gigantic dam, often leading the struggle from the frontlines. In this short excerpt from her longer interview, she details the struggle of the scheduled tribe women, the challenges they faced as women during the course of the struggle and the state repression they faced including beatings, intimidation and jails. She talks of the difficulties that women endured in travelling by trains and camping in the power centers of India like Delhi and Mumbai for justice and rights. She talks of how they had never been to such large cities before and how this impacted the adivasi people in mind and body when they had to camp for days on end in the congested – polluted cities for just a hearing from the power holders. She also remembers the martyrs in the movement including Rehmal Punya Vasave who lost his life in police firing during protests.
Dedlibai also throws light on the Adivasi way of life on the banks of the River Narmada, the agricultural practices they followed, dependence on minor forest produce and how the SSP threatens all of this and much more, including submerging their Gods and Goddesses.
The translation of this interview needed special expertise as it is in Pawari language, which has no written script and spoken only in a limited region of the country. I therefore wish to specially acknowledge Rahul Banerjee for the translation of this interview.
Interview Duration: 0:53:00
Language: Pawari, Subtitles in English
Subtitles can be switched on and off by clicking ‘CC’ button at the bottom right of the video