Medha patkar is the key organiser and strategist of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA-Save the Narmada Movement), a people’s organisation struggling to stop the construction of dams on India’s largest west-flowing river, Narmada. The World-Bank financed projects will have submerged more than 37,000 hectares of forest and agricultural land upon completion, displacing some 32,000 vilagers whose livelihood depends on these natural resources. Although their protests are peaceful, the activists are continually intimidated and she has often been beaten and arrested by the police. Medha Patkar almost died during a 22-day hunger strike 1n 1991. Yet, undaunted, she continued to lead the struggle in the true spirit of Gandhi’s non-violence.