Govt awaits ground report on coastal road at Posco site

The state government is awaiting the ground report from the Jagatsinghpur district administration before taking a call on resuming work for the coastal road leading to the site of the steel mill proposed by Posco India near Paradip.

Work on the road, which had taken off on December 14, had been halted after a violent incident broke out due to the clash between the supporters and opponents of the Posco project. Even after the recent arrest of Bapi Sarkhel, the controversial contractor and owner of the construction agency executing the road work, an uneasy calm still prevails at the site with the project supporters and opponents understood to be shaping their strategies for the near future.

"We have called for the ground report from the site where the construction work for the coastal road was going on. The ground situation is being reviewed and a decision can be taken after we receive the report”, said state Chief Secretary B K Patnaik.

Posco supporters have viewed the halt in construction work of the coastal road as a dampener to the project.

"The halt in construction work of the coastal road is a dampener. It has dented the morale of the villagers backing the project”, said Nirvaya Samantray, secretary, United Action Committee (UAC), a pro-Posco group active at the project site.

The protesters, however, have threatened to continue the agitation against the coastal road.

"Our agitation will continue. The locals have been opposing the Posco project for over six years and our protest will continue unabated”, said Sisir Mohapatra, leader of anti-Posco outfit Posco Pratirosh Sangram Samiti (PPSS).

The violent incident had occurred on December 14 at Bose Callis point under Kujang police station limits when supporters and opponents of Posco project clashed, resulting in the death of one person besides injuring 25 others.

The incident had snowballed into a major controversy with the Opposition as well as ruling party legislators accusing Sarkhel of fomenting violence and raising an unrelenting demand for his arrest