ANGUL: Production and despatch of coal from Talcher Coalfields was badly hit due to an agitation staged by the local outfit Talcher Surakshya Manch.
The manch staged the agitation to press for fulfilment of its 20-point charter of demands including making Talcher medical college and hospital functional and construction of Ghantapada railway bridge. The agitators stopped work at eight coal mines and brought production and despatch to a halt for a few hours before local police intervened.
Sources said around seven platoons of police led by an additional SP were deployed in the mining area in the afternoon.
DIG Umashankar Dash said mining operations resumed in all the coal mines in the afternoon. He informed cases were registered in various police stations against the manch activists for obstructing mining operations.
Manch convenor Murali Sahoo, however, claimed the agitation was a success. A meeting was held at the sub-collector’s office in the evening but the participants could not arrive at a conclusion.
“Another meeting will be held on Sunday among MCL, manch leaders and the local administration to resolve the issue”, said sub-collector Manoj Kumar Tripathy. Meanwhile requesting anonymity, a senior official said though police personnel were deployed at the mines, production was hampered on the day due to the agitation.
On the other hand, MCL’s head of public relations KK Mishra claimed mining operations resumed after three hours of disruption.