Just ahead of the inauguration of the Statue of Unity, the government is facing strong protest from the affected tribal farmers for failing to provide them compensation.

As many as 75,000 tribal residents of Narmada district have threatened to go on a fast on Wednesday, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to unveil the statue.

“Tribal lands were taken away without due compensation for the Narmada Dam project. The issue was promised to be resolved back in 2013. But the wait got longer for them and the issue still remains unresolved. The government's priority is clearly visible, tourism is being promoted at the cost of farmers,” said Suresh Mehta, former Gujarat Chief Minister.

Mehta alleged that the government had retained the water at the dam site at the level of 127.9 metres so that it can be provided for the 12-km stretch of Garudeshwar weir, where the Statue of Unity stands.

“A large part of agriculture in the State is facing water shortage. At this juncture, this water should have been provided to them, instead it is being released for the Statue of Unity project,” Mehta said. He also alleged lack of transparency in funding of the project, which cost ₹2,989 crore.

“Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) were arm-twisted into contributing for the project under CSR,” he alleged.

Earlier, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), in its report on CPSEs for March 31, 2017, had pointed out that ₹146.83 crore contributed by five CPSEs to ‘Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Rashtriya Ekta Trust (SVPRET)’ to meet the shortfall of ₹780 crore as contribution, did not qualify as CSR under the law as the project was not a heritage asset.

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