Yesterday’s violent clash between the anti-displacement protestors and police at Kalinganagar has put a halt to the government move to use force to evacuate anti-Posco agitators who have been squatting on Balitutha bridge, the entry point to the Posco project site, for last four months preventing entry of government and Posco officials into the site.
The government had sent about 25 platoons of police force to the Posco site area yesterday and the action to evacuate the squatters was expected to start within a day or two.
However, the violence at Kalinganagar, which led to the death of one protester in police action, has forced the administration to take a cautious approach which would effectively delay any police action on anti-Posco agitators, said the sources.
Meanwhile, 750 police personnel, who were deployed in the area under the command of assistant superintendent of police, Balakrushna Sahoo, are camping at Kujang, Badgabpur and Balitutha, within 5 to 6 Km of the Posco site, ready to move in when the situation becomes conducive for action. Similarly, the district officials led by Paradip ADM, Sarojkant Chaudhry and sub-collector, Murlidhar Mallick have been camping at Kujang to start operation to evacuate the protestors from Balitutha bridge. On the contrary, the activists of Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS), the outfit leading the agitation against the Posco project and leaders of CPI and some assorted groups opposing displacement in the area today assembled at Balitutha and reaffirmed their resolve not to allow the government and Posco officials into the site.
They declared that the agitation against the project would continue till the state government cancels the MOU with Posco for this 12 million tonne steel plant.
Local MP, Bibhuprasad Tarai, Chatrapur legislator, Adikanda Sethy, AITUC leader, Anit Chakrabarty, Odisha Khetamajdoor Sangh chief, Khirod Prasad Singhdeo, president of State Krushak Sabha, Biswanath Sahoo, CPI leader, Gaurihari Nayak exhorted people to unite against the “anti-people, anti tribal and anti-state polices of the government”, which, they alleged, was protecting the interests of the industrialists”.
PPSS leader Abhya Sahoo informed that CPI leader A.B. Burdhan would be visiting the area on19th May to give boost to their agitation.
The activists of PPSS, which has been spearheading the anti-Posco movement since last four years, have been staging mass dharna at Balitutha since 26th January, 2010. Sahoo said, PPSS is determined not to allow land acquisition for the project at any cost and is ready to go to any extent to protect the livelihood of local people.
