Gram Sabha for Bijahan coal mine cancelled as villagers skip meeting

Arrangements for the meeting were made with tent and chairs at Hatibandha ground of Junadihi.
Image used for representational purpose.
Image used for representational purpose. (Photo | EPS)
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ROURKELA: The Sundargarh administration’s bid to take consent of locals for operation of Adani Group’s Bijahan coal block in Hemgir block failed with the affected villagers refraining from participating in the Gram Sabha meeting on Wednesday.

Arrangements for the meeting were made with tent and chairs at Hatibandha ground of Junadihi. The block development officer (BDO) and tehsildar of Hemgir reached the venue on time but none of the villagers turned up. Instead, the affected villagers held a parallel meeting at a distance of around 1.5 km in Jamkani village in presence of Sundargarh MLA Jogesh Singh. Subsequently, the meeting was declared cancelled.

The Gram Sabha meeting was aimed at taking approval for acquisition of 250 acre of land in Bijahan village and 188.200 acre in Bhograkachhar for setting up Bijahan coal mining project of Mahanadi Mines and Minerals Pvt Ltd (MMMPL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Adani Enterprises Ltd (AEL).

The Hemgir block administration was supposed to conduct the Gram Sabha and submit a copy of the resolution along with Form M and Form J as per the Odisha Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Rules, 2016.

MLA Singh said Sundargarh being a scheduled district, the Gram Sabha is the final authority to approve or reject any proposal. The administration should clearly communicate the offers of land compensation and R&R package before seeking approval of the Gram Sabha in a hurry.

Displacement leader Rajendra Naik said, “Since the administration is not providing credible assurance towards offers of land compensation, R&R packages, job provisions and R&R Colony site, there has been a trust issue and the affected villagers want written assurance before going ahead.”

Sources said the affected villagers want Rs 1.5 crore per acre of private land and compensation of Rs 1 crore in lieu of job among other things.

Exactly a year back, villagers had prevented the company authorities from carrying out drone survey at Bhograkachhar village and insisted on the conduct of Gram Sabha.

The Bijahan coal block is spread over about 1,100 hectare including 608.64 hectare of forest land at Bijahan, Jharpalam, Girisima and Bhograkachhar villages. The proposal involves open cast mining operations over 631.54 hectare with capacity of 5.26 MTPA and installation of a coal handling plant. Around 459 families will be displaced and 376 affected due to the project.

The MMMPL was granted mining lease in October 2022 by the Coal Ministry. Amid protest, the public hearing on environmental impact of Bijahan coal mine was conducted on December 1, 2023 by the OSPCB.

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