Agitators stall work for second day at Posco site

Slogan-shouting youths, women and children marched to Noliasahi-Polang area in the Nuagaon panchayat where the boundary wall and rehabilitation colonies were being built and demanded that work be halted immediately, officials said.

Land acquisition has been 'temporarily halted' since June 21, while work on land already acquired is continuing.

Three vehicles being used for the work were forced by villagers to drive to Nuagaon as about 200 armed police deployed nearby did not intervene, they said.

Additional District Magistrate, Paradip, Sarojkanta Choudhury said that the agitation was unlawful as prohibitory orders were in force.

The imposition of prohibitory orders were announced over public address system and the protesters asked to leave or face police action.

Soumendra Nayak, samiti member of the Nuagaon panchayat said since the government did not fulfil the six demands made by pro-Posco Unified Action Committee (UAC), people stopped the construction work."We will not allow construction in the area until our demands are fulfilled," Nayak said.

UAC's demands include proper rehabilitation for the families who have lost their land, increased compensation and employment to at least one member from each family.
State-owned Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) in-charge in the area, Ratan Agarwal said the state government would construct the boundary walls and rehabilitation colonies and hand it over to Posco.

In the first phase, Rs three crore has been sanctioned and contract for the construction given to a private firm BMC Pvt Ltd of Paradip.

Police, on the other hand, staged a flag-march near Gobindpur in the Dhinkia panchayat area where a dharna in on by the Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) where they were joined by BJP supporters led by state state chief Jual Oram.