Palpable tension prevailed in Ramdaspur panchayat under Barang block in Cuttack district on Tuesday when villagers staunchly opposed construction of a boundary wall by the Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Idco) for the Gitanjali Gems Industrial Park. Irate villagers under the banner of the Adivasi Adhikar Manch demolished the semi-constructed boundary wall.
The locals alleged that the Government is snatching land from poor and downtrodden people and handing it over to the Idco, which in turn is allotting it to industrialists.
They demanded immediate stoppage of all construction. Meanwhile, police forces were deployed at the spot to avoid the situation from deteriorating further.
Notably, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had laid the foundation-stone for the Gitanjali Gems Industrial Park in 2016. later, the Idco acquired land for the project.