UAC members to boycott meet on Posco project

The United Action Committee (UAC), a purportedly pro-Posco outfit, has decided to boycott the meeting convened by the Jagatsinghpur district administration on Saturday to finalize the compensation against loss of betel vines, rehabilitation package and other issues related to the Posco steel project.

The meeting is scheduled to be held at Paradip and would be chaired by Priyabrata Pattnaik, chairman and managing director, Orissa Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Idco). Pattnaik was keen to interact with the affected villagers to resolve the issues and expedite land acquisition for the Posco project

Meanwhile, the UAC which conducted its meeting at Nuagaon today decided not to attend the meeting on Posco as they felt that the both the administration and police are playing with the fate of the Posco affected villagers.

Recently, the UAC members in Nuagaon panchayat had refused to apply for compensation provided by Posco unless their 29-point charter of demands is fulfilled.

Their demands include restoring normalcy in trouble torn Dhinkia and Gobindpur villages, resettlement of 70 families of Dhinkia and withdrawal of police forces illegally deployed in the peaceful zones.

The villagers of Nuagaon panchayat had decided not to concede even an inch of forest land for the Posco project at the recent Pallisabha (village level consultative meet) and now the villagers of Dhinkia panchayat have followed suit.

Sisir Mohapatra, the sarpanch of Dhinkia panchayat said, “At the Pallisabha held today at the Dhinkia panchayat, the villagers have vowed not to allow the Posco and government officials to acquire forest land for the Posco steel plant.