Protest Against Ken-Betwa River Link Project Cleared By Police; Leader Amit Bhatnagar 'Detained'

Chhatarpur: A 15-day protest against the Ken-Betwa river interlinking project and other development works in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur district was cleared by police on Sunday morning, with protesters, mainly tribal women, sent back to their villages even as a dispute emerged over whether the agitation's leader had been detained.The protest, launched on July 3 on the banks of the Barana river near Kupi village in Chhatarpur district, had drawn attention over the past fortnight with a series of dramatic demonstrations, including a jal satyagraha, a symbolic chita (funeral pyre) satyagraha and a faansi satyagraha. The agitation was led by Amit Bhatnagar, who had been on an indefinite hunger strike for 11 days, demanding action on alleged irregularities

in the implementation of the project and compliance with environmental and legal provisions.

Early Morning Clearance, Conflicting Claims

Police personnel arrived at the protest site in large numbers from around 5 am on Sunday (July 19), according to protest leader Divya Ahirwar, who alleged that Bhatnagar and other protesters were detained before he could address the media on what she described as alleged corruption of Rs 400 crore in the project. Additional Superintendent of Police Aditya Patle denied that any protester was arrested or detained, telling PTI that protesters were taken in buses to their native villages, with those from Panna district sent there and those from Chhatarpur and nearby areas dropped at their respective villages.Ahirwar claimed the administration would be responsible if any harm came to Bhatnagar or any of the protesters, and appealed to people to speak out against corruption. The protesters had been demanding that the administration follow the law and ensure constitutional rights in the implementation of the project, she said.

What The Protesters Alleged

Over the course of the 15-day agitation, protesters raised a range of grievances related to the Ken-Betwa Link Project as well as the Majhgaon and Runjh irrigation projects. Bhatnagar alleged that displaced families had lost their land, forests, water resources, livelihoods and cultural identity, while some had been subjected to false criminal cases, illegal eviction, disconnection of electricity supply and demolition of schools. He demanded that the administration stop intimidating villagers and publicly display the list of project-affected families in every village.The protesters also alleged that assurances given by the administration in April had not been fulfilled, and raised concerns about violations related to land acquisition, rehabilitation and environmental safeguards.

What Is The Ken-Betwa Link Project?

The Ken-Betwa Link Project is the country's first river interlinking project under the National Perspective Plan. It seeks to transfer surplus water from the Ken river to the Betwa river to provide irrigation and drinking water facilities in the drought-prone Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The administration has maintained the project is of national importance and is being executed in accordance with the law, rejecting the protesters' allegations of irregularities.