Irate villagers intensify stir against Posco

The affected villagers of the Posco's mega steel project near Paradip staged agitation in front of the Erasama tehsil office in Jagatsinghpur district, demanding halt to the project's boundary wall construction wall till their 14-point charter of demands is fulfilled.

Thousands of villagers including women of Nuagaon and Gadkujang, who were supporting the project hitherto, participated in the agitation and vowed to not allow the project work till their demands were settled.

"We have no intention to call off our stir without fulfilment of our demands because we have been harassed by Posco officials and the administration on many occasions. Both have betrayed us and so we have opted to launch the agitation," said Jeebanlal Behera, leader of United Action Committee (UAC), a pro-Posco outfit.

"The demands of the affected villagers are genuine. The administration has undertaken various schemes for development of roads and construction of cyclone shelters in the area at a cost of Rs 44 crore. We are aware of the demands of the villagers," said Jagatsinghpur district collector Satya Kumar Mallick, addressing the gathering. He appealed to the villagers to call off their stir as all the demands will be deliberated at the RPDAC (Rehabilitation & Periphery Development Advisory Committee) meeting to be held very shortly.

The key demands of the agitating villagers include job for one member of each of the affected families, increase in land price from Rs 17 lakh to Rs 25 lakh per acre, 30 per cent increase in compensation for betel crop as decided at the last RPDAC meeting in 2010.