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Dinesh Agrawal Profile Page
Dinesh Agrawal
Online Status OFFLINE
Member Since 10/16/2007
 

Additional Info

Short Statement: One of the most important issues which makes direct impact on the process of R&R is the process of decision making in public interest. It is a well-known fact that the decisions in public interest are made based on the demand of the people and not the need of the people. The people, who are educated, knowledgeable and articulate, often termed as the creamy layers of the society, create the demand. The uneducated and marginalized people remain a silent spectator of the decision making process which decides their destiny. While it is an established democratic process, it raises the issue of equity.

How can the marginalized people be brought into the main stream of the decision making process? Or, whether these marginalized people can really make any fruitful contribution to the decision making process?

This issue of "Need" could be exemplified in the light of Key Note address at the International Conference on "transition to Sustainability" May 2000, by Amartya Sen, recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize for Economies. Sen has talked of fear of authoritarianism in presuming that some privileged officials or other "leaders" would determine the priority and feasibility of needs. Sen raised the issue whether people be seen in term of their 'needs' and not in terms of their 'freedom' to decide what they want. Another problem highlighted by Sen is that the people's perception about their expectations/needs will be unjustly limited depending on their deprivation. Therefore, freedom has greater role to play in achieving the sustainability.

Thus under a situation of haplessness, people may be contended by getting their most elementary requirement. However, the advent of establishment of project township having most modern facilities and high standard of living, creates awareness and make them feel jealous and deprived of their revised needs.

To conclude, it is difficult to address the R&R issues through historical "Need" based model of ensuring the improvement or at least regaining previous standard of living, in the shortest possible time. This calls for a paradigm shift to address the R&R issues through "Freedom" based dynamic model as integral part of creation of Social Capital and Sustainable Development.
Displacement Experience: Dinesh Agrawal has been Head of R&R in NTPC since 1993. NTPC has 20 Coal and Gas Based Power Project with a total capacity of 19,435 MW and has now ventured in Hydro-Power. He has coordinated about 30 socio-economic studies and formulated Remedial Action Plan (ReAP) for 12 Projects with total capacity of 15000 MW and 11 Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) for 11 projects with capacity of 10,600 MW. He work included coordination with the World Bank, Govt. of India, NGOs and PAPs, particularly for addressing the complex R&R issues in Singrauli Region.
Accomplishments: Fellow of LEAD International, U.K.
Highest Degree: Bachelor of Technology (Mechanical Engineering), G. B. Pant University of Agriculture & Technology, Pantnagar, India, 1977

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Cote d'Ivoire:Protest by Social Scientists
 A large group of West Africa, Europe, and North American academics and social scientists, many of whom are students of population displacement, have signed onto an editorial written and circulated by a group of West African academics and social scientists.  They argue that the former President of Cote d'Ivoire, Laurent Gbagbo, is abusively clinging to power after having blatantly tried to falsifiy the recent elections. The point out that international bodies have confirmed that the opposition candidate, Alassane Ouattara, has defeated Gbagbo. Nonetheless, the Gbagbo and his military supporters prevent the access to power of the newly-elected President. The likelihood of renewed violent conflict, civil war, and bloodshed in Cote d'Ivoire is high and increasing, involving obvious risks of renewed massive uprooting and population displacement. 
 

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