Members of the Khandadhar Surakhya Samiti (KSS) and the Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) on Sunday urged both the Centre and the State Government to take the side of the Paudi Bhuyans (tribals of Khandadhar area) and scrap the plan to give the Khandadhar mines to the South Korean steel company Posco.
Paudi Bhuyan chief Bilua Nayak of the KSS asked the Government why it failed to organise Gram Sabhas for Khandadhar like it did in Niyamgiri under the Forest Rights Act (FRA). “Tell us who matters, Paudi Bhuyans or Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), he wanted to know.”
Nayak along with PPSS spokesperson Prashant Paikray said the State Government’s obsession for the Posco only cinfirms that the Government has become an agent of the company at the cost of peace and prosperity of its own people. “let the Government decide over our forest rights first, after which they can think of anything else,” said the tribal chief, adding that they would not allow mining in their area.
Nayak demanded a full stop to all irrational and unjust lease systems. He also recalled the earlier stand of Union Minister Jual Oram and warned him against abandoning the people to save his chair under the pressure from the Modi Government.
Supporting Nayak, environmental activist Prafulla Samantara said Khandadhar needs the FRA, 2006 and certainly not FDI. He also questioned the Modi Government’s attempt to dilute provisions of the FRA in different pretexts to please his electoral mentors and also demanded to scrap the Ordinance on land Acquisition.