SAMBALPUR: Land oustees of Hirakud Dam project submitted a memorandum addressed to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and to Sambalpur Collector Dibya Jyoti Parida on Thursday demanding 10 decimal homestead land for the displaced families.
General secretary of Hirakud Dam Bisthapith Kalyan Samiti Prafulla Boxi said the state government had announced to provide 10 decimal homestead land to the project affected people in 2002. Though 20 years have passed, the promise is yet to be fulfilled.
“Thousands of displaced families are still waiting for the promised land. Besides many have not got any compensation,” he alleged. Boxi further informed that around 26,501 families were affected due to the construction of the dam. At least 16,934 applications for homestead land have been submitted by the displaced families including 10,465 from Jharsuguda, 2,719 from Sambalpur, 3,100 from Sundargarh and 650 from Bargarh district.
Collector Parida received the memorandum and assured the Samiti members to look into their demand.
Notably, Hirakud Dam project completed 66 years of its establishment on Thursday. The project was inaugurated by Jawaharlal Nehru on January 13, 1957.