Former Finance Minister and expelled BJD leader Prafulla Chandra Ghadai on Friday demanded that the State Government open all the non-operative mines and reinstate the retrenched labourers. “The Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) and the State Government did not take timely action which led to closure of mines and rendered thousands of labourers jobless,” Ghadai said while addressing around 4,000 workers on May Day on Friday.
He said the 34 iron, chromites and manganese mines, which had been operating in Jajpur and Keonjhar district for the last 40 years, were closed in April 2006 as the OMC failed to get clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. Over 50,000 labourers, who were depending on mines for their livelihood, are now suffering, he said. “Steel industries and chromites mines in Sukinda Valley are discharging industrial and mines wastes in the Brahmani system, completely disregarding the laws of the land. The authority is concerned only to provide water to big industrial houses in the Kalinganagar area. But the authority pays only lip service to poor tribals,” said Ghadai.
He said the Sukinda Shramika Sangh would fight for workers who are not getting proper salaries. He also alleged that many companies have betrayed land losers by not giving them jobs. “The Tata steel plant will commission in four to six months. It should stop giving lip service and start giving jobs to locals,” he said. The May Day rally was also addressed by sangh vice-president Vivekananda Bose and Sukinda Region Chromites Mazdoor Sangh secretary Narayan Chandra Dhir among others.