Lucknow: Vishwanath Kharwar awaits his last selection as a voter from Sundari Village in the Sonbhadra-Up district with an inevitable feeling that has become part of his life for 45 years.
Back in 1976, when the stone foundation from the Kanhar Dam project was placed, Vishwanath was almost 10 and a half decades later, the calculation time seemed to have arrived for Sundari and 10 other villages of the Duddhi constituency which would be flooded by the waters of Kanhar River after the operational project at the end of this year.
“Most of our lives have passed by waiting for the project to begin.
But when everything starts moving, we are given a raw agreement.
Every family gets Rs 7.11 lakh on their mainland,” Vishwanath said, demanding a compensation increase.
Residents of all 11 villages will stop being part of Duddhi’s assembly chair, amounting to 403 among many constituencies above, seems to fight against similar feelings as a poll getting closer.
“Things will change forever after this election.
The river will flow to our land, and we will all be spread in various parts of Sonbhadra.
I can only pray that our last voice from our village ensures a better future,” Rani said Devi from Sugwaman.
Speaking for 25,000 strange voters from 11 villages, which have a combined population of around 50,000, the former Head of Gambira Prasad Korchi Village has approached various political parties in hopes of getting patient hearing during the election time.
“The party lends us ears only during polls.
We have decided to support those who promise to do something for us,” he said.
Irrigation department officials said more than 65% of the land needed for the project had been obtained, but some villagers refused to accept government requirements.
Gambira said the villagers wanted compensation to double, work for at least one member of each neglected family, a house under the PM watch out yojana and alternative agricultural land.
Kanhar Straddling Duddhi Dam Project is expected to benefit its parts, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
The project has been launched with an estimated cost of RS 27.75 Crore, which has since swelled to Rs 2,000 Crore.
According to the Blueprint Project, 39 meters high and a 3.2 km dam will be built to store 0.15 million acres of water.
It also requires a 121 km canal construction to irrigate more than 35,000 hectares, profitable 108 villages.
Overall, around 2,500 families will be moved by the dam.