PARADIP: Hundreds of families displaced by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) at Paradip are staging an indefinite dharna at oil refinery project site demanding employment in the company.
Staging the protest under the banner of Eastern India Oil Refinery Displaced Families on Wednesday, the union leaders said IOCL, as well as the administration, neglected those who parted with 3,345 acres of land, including 2,876 acres private and 468 acres government, since the project inception in 1998.
The IOCL and State Government had assured the affected people would be reasonably compensated and special care would be taken to provide housing and employment once the project started, said union president Jadumani Pradhan.
The Centre’s policy to provide 90 per cent jobs in unskilled and semi-skilled sectors have not been implemented at Paradip refinery project though the same is effective in other refinery projects of IOCL in the country, he added.
They also alleged that IOCL has not honoured the Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy (R&R) Policy-2006 of Odisha Government to rehabilitate land losers and provide compensation to them as per the policy. Land losers now demand employment to a member of each of the 143 displaced families, remuneration to land loser families for skill development as per qualification and skills, development of rehabilitation colony in Dhinkia and housing facilities and land for those who have not benefited from the scheme, contract work and business opportunity to displaced families.