KORAPUT: Land oustees displaced due to Nalco’s mines and plant have the right to stage protests peacefully for their legitimate issues.
It is time Nalco authorities, district administration, land displaced persons and people’s representatives iron out the issue, suggested Odisha State Seeds Corporation chairman and district BJD president Ishwar Chandra Panigrahi.
Addressing land displaced persons from 14 villages near Damanjodi who began a dharna on Sunday near the Nalco office to press for their demands on Sunday evening, Panigrahi condemned the Navaratna PSU’s dual rehabilitation and resettlement policy.
The PSU had given multiple jobs to affected persons at Angul but in the case of Damanjodi only one person from a family was given job at the plant.
“It is injustice towards people from villages near Damanjodi who were affected due to Nalco’s mines and plant,” the ruling party leader said.
Addressing the gathering, Pottangi MLA Pritam Padhi said several of the land displaced persons died just 5-7 years after they were given jobs at Nalco’s plant at Damanjodi and their widows and dependants are suffering due to the PSU’s faulty rehabilitation and resettlement policy.
“Such people are living a life of penury for the last three decades,” he said. The legislator urged the executive director of Nalco to provide jobs to the widows and dependants within the next three months.
Koraput MLA and district planning board chairman Raghuram Padal urged Nalco authorities to conduct a baseline socio-economic survey to ascertain the condition of people affected by the company’s plant and mines.
The demands of the land displaced persons would be sent to the Nalco CMD for approval. Among others, Koraput Sub-Collector Lalit Kuanr, Koraput tehsildar Ranjan Mansheth, Nalco executive director RS Dash, legislators of Laxmipur, Koraput and Pottangi along with 28 representatives of land displaced persons from 14 affected villages were present in the meeting.