BS Round Table: Chhattisgarh to spend Rs 5k cr in mining-affected villages

175 villages are severely affected and 500 to 600 villages moderately affected by mining in state

The Chhattisgarh government would spend Rs 5,100 crore in villages affected by mining as part of a three-year action plan, Chief Secretary Vivek Dhand said on Thursday, emphasising that the people should not suffer due to development activities.

Dhand said the state was now exploring its rich mineral resources with caution so that it did not become “a curse for the people”. He was speaking at the Business Standard Chhattisgarh Round Table 2017, where policymakers and industry experts also highlighted this issue. 

As many as 175 villages are severely affected and 500 to 600 villages moderately affected by mining in the state. Under the new plan, the government would spend about Rs 5 crore in each village. “These villages should not look like a ghost place or resource curse,” he added. 

The chief secretary said land acquisition in Chhattisgarh had never been a major issue, as the government had protected the interests of the people. The land losers, he said, were getting huge money, while the digitisation of land records had been helpful for the people and the industry.

N Baijendra Kumar, additional chief secretary (commerce and industry), said Chhattisgarh was the first state that enacted a law making skill development a right for its people. “Our model was followed by other states,” he said, adding that the state was discouraging investment in core sectors, and promoting non-core sectors to generate maximum employment.

He said the state government had designed a policy to promote medium, small and micro enterprises so that more people could get benefits. 

Naya Raipur Development Authority Chairman Aman Kumar Singh said the upcoming new capital city was the first planned city of the 21st century. “The development is taking place in phases, and people’s convenience and amenities top the priority list,” he said. 

While Rs 10,000 crore had been spent, another Rs 10,000 crore would be pumped into the project, Singh said.

Bharat Bhasker, director at the Indian Institute of Management- Raipur, said only resources would not help, and that special attention had to be paid for developing human resources. He stressed on skill development and ease-of-doing business. 

Chief Executive Officer of Bharat Aluminium Company Limited (Balco), Vikas Sharma, said the company had provided skill training to over 6,000 youths in six trades in the past five years. He underlined the new trend in work culture and said the new managers should not compromise on their work.