Bhubaneswar: Accusing the Orissa government of resorting to forcible land acquisition for Posco steel project in Jagatsinghpur district, five political
parties have decided to stage civil disobedience agitation here on Monday.
Leaders of CPI, CPI-M, Forward Bloc, RJD and Samajwadi
Party at a meeting alleged that the state government used
force to acquire land from the residents of the three gram
panchayats under Ersama block near Paradip.
"Though Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had earlier
promised not to use force for land acquisition, the police
on Friday assaulted people unwilling to hand over their betel
vines for the steel project," said CPI state secretary
Dibakar Nayak.
Around 4,000 families had been earning their
livelihood by undertaking cultivation on forest land in Ersama
block for generations, the five parties said in a joint
statement accusing Orissa government of violating provisions
of Forest Rights Act, 2006 and setting aside interest of
farmers for Posco project.
Demanding shifting of the proposed plant site from
fertile land of the three gram panchayats, they pointed out
that earlier Indian Oil Corporation`s (IOC) oil refinery
project was relocated to Paradip from Dhinkia area.
Similarly, the proposed Posco project should also be
set up elsewhere, they demanded.
Defending villagers identified as "encroachers" by the
state government for undertaking cultivation on government
land generations, they said the villagers have rights over the
land on which they have been cultivating for generations.
In protest against government`s move and alleged use
of force for land acquisition, the workers of the five parties
would start civil disobedience agitation near the state
secretariat tomorrow, they said.
PTI
