Tension in the area dissipated but soon the NBA s attention shifted to two other Big Dams in Madhya Pradesh the Narmada Sagar and the Maheshwar. Though these dams were nowhere near their projected heights their impacts on the environment and the people of the valley were already apparent. In October 2000, the Supreme Court issued a judgement to allow immediate construction of the Sardar Sarovar Dam to 90 meters. In addition, it allowed for the dam to be built up to its originally planned height of 138 meters. Nobody builds Big Dams to provide drinking water to rural people.
Nobody can afford to.
Translated literally the Dalits are the oppressed or ground-down. The government of India supports the building of over 3,000 dams on the Narmada River. The NBA is a people s movement formed from local people s movements in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat. Through peaceful means, the NBA has brought much media attention to the plight of the native people along the river. Medha Patkar is a prominent leader of the group.