This report by Manthan Adhyayan Kendra discusses the concerns around the private water supply augmentation project in Khandwa town in Madhya Pradesh under the Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT), a Government of India scheme for infrastructure development in small and medium town.
There is a surge of privatisation in the water sector in India. It is being justified in the name of bringing in new investments and increasing efficiency to address the myriad problems of the water sector. At the same time, a series of restructuring programs in many states are attempting to reform the water sector and transform it into a fully commercial and market operation.
The Haribad minor irrigation project in Madhya Pradesh is to be built on the boundary of the two villages of Haribad and Sakad on the Kundi river. The project will largely benefit Haribad, while the tribal people of Sakad will lose their land. This is a brief account of the multiple conflicts that have arisen.
