Tribal’s are displaced or evacuated when big or small dams are constructed. Patrick McCully (1998) takes a serious look at big dams. The human consequences, especially of displacement, are very painful. The tribals who live in the hills and forests are the worst sufferers. McCully writes:
Evidence from numerous dam projects shows that resettlement kills: sickness and death rates usually increase markedly after displacement, especially among the very young and very old.
If we look at the Narmada Bachao Andolan led by Medha Patkar, it shows that most of the oustees of the river valley are the poor tribals. Arundhati Roy has also made a systematic study of the problems of displacement with the tribals found in the valley of Narmada.
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She says that the dam construction is not in the interest of the common good of tribals. The tribals have raised a very important slogan: Whose is Mother Narmada? Ours, ours (Narmada maiya konin chbe? Hamri cbbe, Hamri chbe).
The oustees of the dam argue that just as farmers have tilled the land and fishermen have used the river, tribals have been living in self-sufficient harmony with the forest for generations.
The government cannot own the resources of the community. The biggest flaw in the Narmada project is the lack of a viable rehabilitation policy for the oustees. Thus, one of the severest problems of tribals is their displacement and the resultant rehabilitation.