Overview
- Amit Bhatnagar suspended an 18‑day indefinite hunger strike on July 23 after the Madhya Pradesh administration agreed to fresh, village‑level verifications overseen by teams that include government officials and protest representatives.
- Madhya Pradesh police cleared the Kupi protest site on July 19, took Bhatnagar to Chhatarpur District Hospital for treatment and transported or detained about 150 protesters, actions that escalated the agitation.
- Protesters say hundreds of families were omitted from rehabilitation lists because of flawed surveys, alleged manipulation of gram sabha records and irregular beneficiary lists, claims that the movement says the new surveys must resolve.
- The state has approved extra funds for two irrigation projects and a fresh survey added roughly 750 families to rehabilitation rolls for Majhgaon and Runjh, but activists say those moves do not settle wider distribution disputes.
- The project will displace thousands across Chhatarpur and Panna districts, involves the Daudhan Dam and a 221 km canal, has seen thousands of trees felled near Panna Tiger Reserve and faces ongoing legal and environmental scrutiny including a pending Supreme Court matter.