Anti-Posco brigade forms human barricade to stall Posco land acquisition

Forest department lodges FIR against revenue officials

Peeved over the forcible demolition of betel vines, the anti-Posco villagers of Dhinkia panchayat under the banner of Posco Pratirodha Sangram Samiti (PPSS) today formed a round the clock human blockade on the boundary of Gobindpur to bar the entry of officials to start the land acquisition work.

About 2000 villagers gathered at the site to demonstrate their protest against forcible land acquisition for the Posco project. The protesters asserted they are not going to concede even a single inch of land for the project.

“We formed a human chain to prevent the entry of officials to Gobindpur as a mark of protest against the land acquisition process,” PPSS leader Abhaya Sahu said.

The anti-Posco activists alleged the district administration has already demolished more than 400 betel vines at Nuagaon and Gadkujang panchayats of which 50 per cent of vines have been pulled down forcibly without the consent of the beneficiaries.

They pointed out two such incidents of forcible demolition of betel vines have been witnessed at Nuagaon and Gadkujang panchayats which have been suppressed by the officials.

“Officials have booked one beneficiary while he refused to hand over his betel vine at Nuagaon and also torched the betel vines of another beneficiary of Gadkujang panchayat illegally by ignoring the affidavit being produced by the administration at Orissa High Court highlighting that no forcible land acquisition can be done at the Posco site on PIL case”, the activists said.

Meanwhile, the state forest department has lodged an FIR against revenue officials for illegal cutting of trees from revenue land without taking permission from the Orissa Forest Development Corporation (OFDC) and not giving compensation to the owner of trees on Tuesday.

Though Posco Company has obtained permission to demolish trees from forest land but no permission has been taken either by the district administration or Posco company to cut trees from revenue land towards land acquisition for the Posco project.

As per the provision, the company or administration has to take permission from OFDC to cut the trees from revenue land. After taking permission, the revenue department should deposit the royalty being fixed by the corporation. Similarly, revenue department has to give compensation of tree to the rightful owner during demolition of trees from revenue land.