Posco: Groundwork at Ground Zero begins

BHUBANESWAR: Despite mounting opposition, State Government has decided to go ahead with project-related work in areas already acquired for the Posco steel plant in Jagatsinghpur district.     However, further land acquisition has been suspended for the time being. Chief Secretary Bijay Kumar Patnaik told mediapersons on Tuesday that about 1,800 acres of land has been acquired so far and work is being started.  Preliminary work like cleaning, levelling and tree-cutting are now being taken up. Despite protest from United Action Committee (UAC), a pro-Posco outfit, district administration with the help of Idco officials expedited the demarcation of boundary of Posco project at Polang under Gadakujang gram panchayat amid tight security.  Besides, stone was also laid for a rehabilitation colony for displaced persons near Polang and Noliasahi. Four MPs from the Left parties and leaders of five political parties on Tuesday staged dharna with women and children at Gobindpur expressing solidarity with the agitating villagers. The four MPs __ Basudev Acharya of CPM, Gurudas Dasgupta and Bibhu Prasad Tarai of CPI and Narahari Mahato of Forward Bloc __met Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) office-bearers to discuss future course of action. Describing the agitation as a people’s movement, Dasgupta said villagers are fighting for their land and livelihood.  Criticising the use of force for land acquisition, he said the issue will be raised in the next session of Parliament by the Left parties while demanding that land acquisition be stopped forthwith.  Acharya said it is a heroic battle launched by children and women to save their land and livelihood braving force by the Government. The administration’s attempt to terrorise people is human rights violation, he charged.