The expansion activities of the the Bhubaneswari mine of the Mahanadi Coalfield limited (MCl) in Talcher were stalled after a road cutting work by the mine was opposed by the local villagers backed by the local MlA near Narharipur village on Saturday.
The MCl management in the presence of police was cutting the old road beside Maharana Sahi and Shisu Mandir at Narharipur village which was at the edge of the mine. A new bitumen alternate road has been constructed for the movement of villagers so that they will not be affected by the mining activities. However, MlA Brajkishore Pradhan with his supporters reached the site and stalled the expansion work.
GM Jagannath Area RP Gupta said that road cutting was done after observing all the formalities with the State Administration in a meeting held on April 10 last year. There is no land for expansion of the Bhubaneswari mine with Talasahi village blocking it in the south and Sarasahi in northwest. Four platoons of police force were deployed near the mine. On the other hand, the MCl officials are worried over the loss of production in the beginning of the financial year while the administration appears helpless in such a situation.