Bhubaneswar: Trouble is brewing for the Sajjan Jindal’s JSW Steel which is proposing to set up a mega steel plant on the land abandoned by the South Korean steel major POSCO.
The Posco Pratirod Sangram Samiti (PPSS), which spearheaded the people’s movement against the location of Posco project in Paradip, is reorganising the people against the JSW’s Rs 40,000 crore steel project going to be located on the Posco land. PPSS is demanding that the government should return the land to the people instead of giving it to JSW.
The state government has offered the 2700 acres of land acquired for Posco project to JSW which is proposing to set up a 10 million tonne steel plant in the state.
PPSS spokesperson Prashant Paikray said that as per the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act (LARR) of 2013, “Land acquired and possession taken over but not utilized within a period of five years from the date of possession shall in all cases revert back to the original land owner.” But the state government is planning to allot the land in favour of JSW, he pointed out.
As per the state government revised land acquisition policy, notified on February 7, 2015, ” land acquired or take over but not utilized within a period of five years from the date of possession shall in all cases revert back to the state and be deposited in the Land Bank automatically.” The state government after cancelling the allotment to Posco has taken the land in Land Bank account of the Idco.
The PPSS strongly condemned the unjust and illegal actions of the government, said Paikray. He said that the government should conduct the Gram Sabha for the new project and implement the Forest Right Act in the area.
