The construction of the proposed integrated titanium plant by Saraf Agencies Private Limited (SAPL) near Chhatrapur in Odisha's Ganjam district has hit another roadblock with the land losers of the project demanding fresh agreement with them before commencement of the project work.
The land-losers' welfare association has submitted a memorandum to the additional district magistrate, Ganjam in this regard. They also stalled the construction work of the project on Friday.
The Kolkata-based company had decided to set up the plant near Chhatrapur on its own after break up its joint venture agreement with Russian partners. Around 260 acres of land, including 230 acres private land, had been acquired for the project about five years back. Nearly 300 people of 4 villages - Tikiria Berhampur, Kanamana, Chandrapada and Mayipatna had lost their land for the project.
"We want a fresh agreement with the company. New agreement is required as five years has elapsed since the first agreement in 2008," said association's adviser Braja Acharya.
In the first agreement, the company had promised to provide jobs to the project-affected families and undertake development work in the area. The company is not showing any interest to implement the agreement, alleged Acharya. Moreover, the association wanted the company to pay a special financial package to the land losers to compensate the loss of earning opportunity due to delay in start of project work. "We are not opposing the project. We want the work should be expedited by employing the local people," said P Dharma Rao, president of the association.
The company had decided to set up the plant after it fell out with its foreign partners, two government-owned companies from Russia, with whom it had formed a joint venture firm named Titanium Products Private Limited to implement project in January, 2008.
The project was pushed into uncertainty following difference between its promoters, mainly on the transfer of the acquired land in the name of the joint venture company.
In the first phase, SAPL would produce 10,000 tonnes of high titanium slag and 6,000 tonnes of high purity pig iron per annum. Around Rs 100-crore will be invested in the first phase of the project which aimed to start the commercial production from May 2014.
