PARADIP: There seems to be no end to the Posco imbroglio. Even as Posco Pratirodha Sangram Samiti (PPSS) continued with its human barricade at Gobindpur opposing the land acquisition by district administration, villagers of Polang, Bhuiyanpal and Gadakujang have joined hands demanding fulfilment of their six demands. Gadakujang panchayat that had earlier extended all support to the administration to expedite the Posco work resisted its attempt to clear the acquired area of trees at Noliasahi on Tuesday. The district officials led by SubCollector Muralidhar Mallick were here to chop around 400 trees on the forest land.
It was only on Monday that villagers of Polang and Noliasahi under Gadakujang panchayat stalled work at the rehabilitation colony and took away the machines used for felling trees. It was the same story at Balisahi under Nuagaon Panchayat where the villagers had opposed the tree felling. It may be noted that the administration has so far acquired about 1,800 acres of land at Nuagaon and Gadakujang panchayats and work on the boundary wall for demarcation at the proposed project site and the rehabilitation colony has
begun.
Kujang Tehsildar Basudev Pradhan said the administration was taking steps to convince the agitating villagers. Meanwhile, officials have been engaged for measuring the flattened areas in Nuagaon where betel vines were demolished in 2008 and identification of the beneficiaries, who are yet to receive compensation. At Gobindpur, Congress leaders Umesh Swain and Jayant Biswal joined PPSS in the dharna even as hundreds of schoolchildren skipped school on Tuesday to form the human barricade. After Monday's faceoff, police and district officials have avoided Gobindpur.
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