Forces redeployed, Posco area survey soon

The survey is likely to begin soon for Posco's proposed mega steel project in Orissa near Paradip, where security forces were redeployed today after the eviction of protesters five days ago.

The security forces had been deployed prior to the eviction of the protesters, camping since January 26, at Balitutha, the entry point to the project but were withdrawn for 12 hours as also prohibitory orders to allow CPI leader A B Bardhan to hold a protest meeting yesterday.

The CPI-backed Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) has been opposing land acquisition at the project site.

About 25 platoons of securitymen comprising around 750 personnel were deployed at Balitutha from where squatters were evicted on May 15 and the road to the proposed plant site cleared.

The survey was likely to be conducted in two of the three gram panchayats near Paradip identified for the South Korean steel major's Rs 52,000 crore (Rs 520 billion) steel plant, official sources said.

"In the first phase, socio-economic and forest areas survey will be held at Nuagaon and Gada Kunjag gram panchayats barring sensitive Dhinkia GP for which teams have been formed," said a senior revenue official.

The decision to exclude Dhinkia from the next survey was taken after gauging the mood of the people at yesterday's protest meeting where many speakers demanded shifting of the proposed plant from Dhinkia, the official said.

Though the administration in 2008 had conducted a socio-economic survey in the three gram panchayats including Dhinkia, the epicentre of the anti-Posco agitation, it was decided to redo it as local people were not happy over the outcome, a senior official said. "The next survey is to verify the previous one which was conducted hurriedly," the official said.

According to 2008 survey, it was estimated that 803 families, including 131 from Dhinkia, would be displaced to set up the 12 mtpa mega steel plant. There were 1961 betel vine plantation over 394.39 acre in the proposed plant site area, and 455 betel vine plantations on 85 acre in Dhinkia gram panchayat jurisdiction.

This apart, there were 1.05 lakh of trees at the site, the survey conducted in 2008 revealed. Meanwhile, the state government was holding a meeting of MLAs from Jagatsinghpur district to speed up the survey.