Abstract
The Hirakud Dam on River Mahanadi, which was the first hydro-irrigation project in Odisha, was planned by the British and later inaugurated by Jawaharlal Nehru in 1957. This chapter gives a vivid account of people’s resistance whose land was going to be submerged by the construction of the dam. It traces the administrative decisions and considerations underlying construction of big dams, which was a salient aspect of the Nehruvian model of development. The chapter collates the voices of the displaced people of the Hirakud Dam, thus revealing their hardships that have continued till today and the denial of compensation. The story of relief and rehabilitation as narrated by the survivors is both poignant and horrific.
Until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.
—Chinua Achebe, 1994
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Notes
- 1.
Harekrushna Mahatab was a freedom fighter and also a leader of the Indian National Congress. He was the Chief Minister of Odisha from 1946 to 1950 and from 1956 to 1961.
- 2.
Nayak was a deputy magistrate under colonial administration. He became an active member of the Bandha Virodhi Committee after retirement. After one year of the movement, he initiated a legal battle for better compensation. His autobiography Mora Purbasmruti Katha devotes a full chapter to the anti-dam movement. The autobiography was serialized for five years in an Odia monthly magazine Navjeevan. It was first published in the year 1966.
- 3.
Sradhakar Supakar was one of the popular leaders of the anti-dam movement. He won the election to the Odisha Assembly from Ganatantra Parishad and continued to fight for the rehabilitation of oustees. His autobiography Madhyama Purusa sheds much light on the various aspects of the movement.
- 4.
Prasanna Panda (19.06.1922–26.12.1997) was a student of Fine Arts in Kolkata. He became one of the most prominent leaders of the anti-dam movement. He joined CPI in 1952 and was elected to the Odisha assembly six times from the Brajrajnagar constituency. He remained committed to the rehabilitation of Hirakud oustees till his death. He is remembered fondly till today; a statue and memorial have been made for him in his village Adhapara.
- 5.
The Report stated: ‘Orissa is a deltaic country and in such a country floods are inevitable; they are nature’s method of creating new land and it is useless to attempt to thwart her in her working. The problem in Orissa is not how to prevent floods, but how to pass them as quickly as possible to the sea. And the solution lies in removing all obstacles which militate against this result…. To continue, as at present, is merely to pile up a debt which will have to be paid, in distress and calamity at the end.’
- 6.
During 1895–1905, Sambalpur had successfully demanded to be part of Odisha. It was under the Central Province of the British administration. The Odia nationality project had already taken a concrete shape when Utkal Sammilani was formed in the year 1903 (see Introduction). In 1936, just a decade before the proposal of Hirakud Dam, Odisha finally became a separate province. However, seeing the turn of events where their lands and livelihoods were going for a toss in nation-building, the anti-dam movement questioned both Odia nationalism and development and made a demand for a separate province. Till date, the demand continues to be made in response to the abject neglect of the region.
- 7.
Bhubaneswar Behera began his professional life as a young hydraulic engineer in the construction of Hirakud Dam who had studied in USA. Written in a fictional style, the autobiography of Behera narrates interesting aspects of construction works and bemoans how Odias are being neglected.
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Padhi, R., Sadangi, N. (2020). The Disease of Gigantism. In: Resisting Dispossession. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-0717-5_2
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