While the nation holds its breath and watches Anti-National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) protests As events at Jantar Mantar unfold in the capital, the geographical heart of the nation is witnessing another act of dissent. In Madhya Pradesh’s Chhattarpur, Women lie on a symbolic funeral pyre, and a few meters away, villagers stand waist-deep in the Barana River, protesting against the Ken Betwa River linking project. The “Nyay do ya mrutyu” was the decision to secure one’s livelihood and remain loyal to the land that one had cultivated for years.
On December 25, 2024, the Indian Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for it 44,605 crore Ken-Betwa river linking projectwhich aims to transport water from the Ken Basin to the Betwa Basin via a 221 km long canal. It is the first project of the ambitious river-linking agenda of the National Democratic Alliance led by the Bharatiya Janata Party. It aims to address water scarcity in parts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh with a commitment to irrigate 10.62 lakh hectares, provide drinking water to 62 lakh people and generate 130 MW of electricity. However, the villagers’ unrest is not only limited to this infrastructure project but also to the Mahjgaon and Runjh irrigation projects.
The complaints stemmed from inadequate compensation, land loss, evictions, unlawful evictions and alleged false police reports against villagers. The local population consists mainly of Adivasis belonging to the Gond and Kol tribes. Their lives are tied to the Ken River and forest products and this project is a signal of doom for these tribal communities who are demanding rehabilitation while the mainstream media overlooks their struggle.
Overlooked and underestimated
Sonam Wangchuk’s indefinite hunger strike It’s painful to watch, but Jai Kisan Sangathan leader Amit Bhatnagar’s indefinite hunger strike isn’t even covered in mainstream media. As the leader of the Chita Andolan in Bundelkhand and Chhattarpur regions, Bhatnagar, who is also the local leader of the Aam Aadmi Party, has demanded fair compensation and rehabilitation for the families affected by the three initiatives. Bhatnagar alleged that the consent of the gram sabhas was fake and there were administrative lapses. The villagers claim that the project has taken away their land without providing adequate and full compensation. But on the 14th day of the hunger strike, the state police intervened violently, dismantled the pyres and shifted Bhatnagar to a hospital.
In February 2026, protests turned violent when villagers threw stones at local officials. They barged into the Bijawar Tehsil office and demanded the release of Bhatnagar, who was taken into custody and released four days later on February 12. Tensions also flared in April when villagers clashed with local police and administration officials who tried to approach them but then retreated. Finally, on April 16, villagers called off their second round of protests after pledging dialogue. A new survey has been announced to ensure that no eligible villager is left out of the recovery package.
Image via NDTV
This time, in July, the images were moving. The villagers lay on pyres floating on the Ken River. This Phansi Satyagraha and Jal Andolan with women standing knee-deep in the river holding infants with nooses around their necks was meant to say that death is better than a life without justice. Their bodies were smeared with earth, a symbol of Mitti Andolan, and they fasted together as part of the Akash Andolan. The villagers claimed that the Daudhan Dam Project 22 ancestral villages were flooded, 7,000 tribal families were forcibly displaced and there was massive corruption. The total area that will be inundated is 9,000 hectares, including over 4,141 hectares of the core area of Panna Tiger Reserve and 1,314 hectares of the buffer zone.
Bundelkhand comprises 13 districts in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. The idea for this project dates back to 1980, when the government formulated a draft National Perspective Plan To transport water from surplus areas to water-scarce regions. Thirty connectivity projects have been identified and the Ken-Betwa link is the only project under the plan that has begun implementation. However, irrigation projects that come at the expense of the livelihoods of the villagers they serve are unacceptable. According to government estimates, around 17,101 trees were identified for felling, of which 12,404 trees were felled within the year Panna Tiger Reserve. Ecologists say the reserve is endangered, as are the habitats of gharials and vultures. A central committee set up by the Supreme Court to examine wildlife clearance submitted a report in 2019. The report questioned the clearance, highlighted large-scale deforestation, raised concerns about the impact on wildlife and cast doubt on the viability of the project.
Legitimate right to rehabilitation
The government maintains that villagers were adequately compensated, but in this third round of protests, tribal communities again raised concerns about inadequate compensation and claimed assurances given at the time were false. The villagers also allege that essential tribal forest rights have been violated. The Panchayats Extension to Scheduled Areas Act, 1996, Empowers the Gram Sabhas with self-governance rights over local lands, minor forest produce and water bodies. Likewise those Forest Rights Act, 2006Legally recognizes the right of forest-dwelling tribes and other traditional forest dwellers to correct historical injustice. The provisions include mandatory advice before purchasing land. The protesters alleged that mandatory approval of the Gram Sabha was not taken before the eviction. Regional alliances such as the National Alliance for Climate and Environmental Justice have condemned the government for using illegal evictions, demolitions and false police reports to force relocations.
The announced rehabilitation package provides compensation for private land under the Land Acquisition Act or Rs 12.5 lakh, whichever is higher, and compensation for trees and orchards. The villagers have demanded relocation from village to village and land to land within the same habitat and demanded an increase in the compensation amount to Rs 25 lakhs. They also strive for greater transparency when measuring properties and houses. Bhatnagar alleges that the provisions of the Land Acquisition Act, 2013 were not followed. Officials claim that many demands cannot be met because they violate the law. For example, the 2013 law recognizes a family as a unit and does not allow benefits to be extended to individual voters. In response to calls to move the deadline to January 1, 2026, officials say a change would violate existing norms. The local government is currently adhering to the February 16, 2024 deadline to determine eligibility.
An official said Frontline Magazine that more than Rs 700 crore was paid in compensation, which constitutes 90% of the award value. They added that additional bonuses would be prepared for those who expressed dissatisfaction with exclusion, which represents about 10% of families.
Nothing less and nothing more
This is not to dismiss the fire burning at Jantar Mantar, but to draw attention to another important movement against arbitrary government actions. Lives, livelihoods and generations of networks are at stake for the supposed “development,” that is, as the government says, “for the betterment” of tribal communities. What is the use of development if it deprives us of the means of survival itself and imposes an idea of cement and concrete without supplies?
Under a web of false promises, these three development projects: Ken-Betwa, Runjh and Majhgaon, obscure social, economic and environmental disasters. The Bhatnagar hunger strike is joined by people from Bundelkhand and Chhattarpur, lying flat on pyres, tied to wood, starving not for food but for the right to life and livelihood. This right is enshrined as a fundamental right in Article 21 of the Indian Constitution.
The age of social media has arrived, with independent local journalists providing relevant reporting. But will mainstream news outlets move beyond the narrative created by the government? Both the anti-NEET paper leak and the Ken Betwa protests demand accountability, consideration and transparency. Both protests have taken the Gandhian route of hunger strike. Both protests receive little or no coverage. The state police intervened in both protests. Both Wangchuk and Bhatnagar were forcibly hospitalized. It is sad that the world’s largest democracy forces its citizens to choose death over life in the unjust situation it has created. True democracy requires that mainstream media move beyond filtering out dissent and reclaim its fundamental duty: holding power to account through critical, unyielding advocacy.
Second year student of Media Studies at CHRIST (Deemed to be University), BRC, Bangalore. A trained Kathak dancer, theater artist and political nerd.
