Adivsis held a meeting on Sunday at the Karansahi football ground near Bileipada under Joda block of Keonjhar district to decide their future course of action for fulfilment of their various demands which they have been putting up before the management of the Tata Sponge factory from time to time but the company is not allegedly paying heed to their grievances.
On November 23, the tribals had held a demonstration in front of the factory’s main gate and handed over their charter of demands to a company representative in the absence of Managing Director Sanjay Patnaik. Source reveal that the management’s representative had assured the delegation to consider their case within a period of 30 days, but so far there seems to be no progress in this regard.
So, the Adivasis held the meeting on Sunday and decided that if the company fails to fulfil their demands, they would again meet the district Collector and SP and the RDC, Samabapur to appraise the problems they have been facing after the company acquired their agricultural lands for setting up the factory.
If the Government fails to intervene in the matter, they would stage a dharna indefinitely in front of the factory’s materials gate and stop the operation of the factory, they threatened. The meeting was attended by Sunaram Munda, Krishna Chandra Gagarai, Durgacharan Munda, Kula Naik and other members of Adivasi organistion HO Seiyan Mashkal Akhala.