In absence of a constitutional forum to redress the grievances, complaints and deprivation of people after being displaced by the projects like mines and industries, the Lokshakti Abhiyan and National Alliance of People's Movements (NAPM), Odisha have urged for a statutory national commission on the rights of displaced people.
The Lokshakti Abhiyan as part of the NAPM had organised five public hearings from 2018 to 2021 on plights of the displaced people in Koraput, Rourkela, Jharsuguda, Keonjhar and Bhubaneswar, where project-affected villagers participated and aired their grievances.
The final report of these hearings prepared by the jury members was released in Bhubaneswar on Sunday on the 97th birth anniversary of veteran socialist leader late Rabi Ray by eminent social scientist Professor Virginious Xaxa in a meeting presided over by Prof Manoranjan Mohanty.
Lok Shakti Abhiyan president Prafulla Samantara said there is no legal or constitutional forum to redress the grievances, complaints and deprivation of people after being displaced by the projects like mines and industries etc. No data on displacement is available with the Government of India or State Governments like Odisha.
“Therefore this initiative has been started to campaign for a constitutional authority or forum to get justice for the displaced people,” he added.
In the report, the NAPM committee recommended that the proposed National Commission would act as a grievance redressal mechanism for people who are already displaced and affected by those projects dating from the time of Independence.
It would publish a yearly status report on persons displaced from different projects and monitor the proper implementation of different legislations dealing with the displacement of people like the National Highways Act 1956, Forest Rights Act 2006, Coal Bearing (Acquisition and Development) Act 2013, the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in LARR Act 2013, making also a periodic policy analysis.