Agitating contractual employees (line men) of th Marwa Tendubhata Thermal Power Station in Janjgir-Champa district in Chhattisgarh went on a rampage on Sunday, injuring 12 police personnel.
Superintendent of Police Janjgir-Champa Prashant Thakur told The Pioneer that negotiations were underway with the employees in the presence of Collector Jitendra Shukla and the Managing Director of the Chhattisgarh State Power Generation Co, NK Bizora, and other senior officials in the plant premises when violence erupted.While the talks were on, some miscreants pelted stones. The police then fired water from cannons to disperse the agitations, who further turned violent and started damaging vehicles and property.
The main gate, the security post and the medical centre were damaged while a car was set on fire. A fire-brigade vehicle, a school bus and other parked vehicles were also damaged.Thakur said around 12 police personnel received minor injuries in the incident. The number may go up. Now, the situation was under control. An official communication said the district administration used water cannons to evacuate the contractual employees. Some employees working in shifts were trapped inside plant since Saturday morning.
The agitators did not allow any staff or officials to enter or move out of premises. During incident, the villagers whose land had been acquired for the project also came out in support of agitators. They blocked all vehicles from the main road connecting power plant. The blockade was lifted later.