Administration yet to decide on resuming Posco land acquisition

The land acquisition for Posco steel project at Gobindpur and Dhinkia villages may be postponed indefinitely due to stiff resistance by the villagers.

The district administration’s dilemma to resume land acquisition at the trouble-torn villages is compounded by the recent beeline of political leaders, civil right activists and anti-land acquisition proponents to the project site.

While a delegation of state Congress and Swami Agnivesh visited Gobindpur yesterday, a team of state BJP leaders had gone there today.

Others who are scheduled to visit the place over the next few days to show there solidarity with the anti-Posco agitators are Medha Pathekar, all India Sarvodaya leader, Amarnath Bhai, chief of Ekata Parishad B.C.Rajgopal, professor Banmalilal Sharma of Azad Bacchao Andolan and president of Gandhi Peace Foundation, Radha Bhat.

The administration, sources said, does not want to foment trouble during the visit of these activists and political leaders and hence, decided to put on hold the land acquisition process for some time.

The additional district magistrate (Paradip), Saroj Kant Chaudhry said, the administration has not yet decided to resume land acquisition at Gobindpur from tomorrow. “We are waiting for the instructions from the higher up”, he said.