By SANTOSH MOHANTY
Rapid industrialisation in Angul district has created a number of issues for the people, the most distressing being the displacement. The Regional Periphery Development Advisory Committee (RPDAC) meeting through which the oustees should get relief by putting forth their grievances before the administration, elected people's representatives and the government of the day as well, has sadly failed to do justice for several reasons, the foremost being its irregularity of sittings.
The RPDAC meeting is supposed to be convenened every three months by the district administration, but months and years pass by, and none bothers why discussions of the oustees' problems are set aside inhumanly. However, after the change of government a year ago, the Mohan Majhi Government in Bhubaneswar has taken some insights to the displacement issue in Angul district. And as a result of this, the 14th RPDAC meeting was held in February this year at Angul in which Northern Division Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC) Ramachandra Yadav, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Dhenkanal MP Rudranarayan Pani, Talcher MLA Brajakishore Pradhan and panchayatiraj institution members of different regions of Talcher region attended.
Although Angul District Collector A M Akhtar informed that the RPDAC meet did take up as many as 18 nagging issues relating to displacement, employment and compensations in Talcher and Kaniha regions in which Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) has acquired their home and hearth for mining, villagers of Goplaprasad alleged that the mining authorities have not yet given employment opportunities to the displaced families nor any compensation as promised earlier.
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| An Open Cast Mine In Talcher Region, Angul District |
It is worthwhile to mention that people belonging to Gopalprasad in Talcher block had forcibly stopped mining activities in Hingula mines for several days recently protesting the alleged apathetic attitude of MCL which always promises them the moon but in reality this is an eyewash.
The District Mineral Fund (DMF), which is set up with the financial contribution of different mining, steel, captive power plants and other ancillary industries for spending on peripheral development of indusrial hotspots like Angul and Talcher region in Odisha, has failed to serve its purpose. Environmental workers fighting for the ecology of region alleged that contribution to DMF has been piling up over the years but precious little has been done so far for the infrastructure development of the region. They said the DMF has a deposit of over Rs 500cr with some fractions of proceeds of the industries, but most of the fund is lying idle due to lack of vision by the district administration as well as the elected representatives who have failed to urge the former to implement projects for the benefit of people living close to mining and industrial set ups.
The MCL is allegedly shying away from its responsibility for providing clean drinking water in the mining regions of Talcher and Kaniha regions in Angul district. Womenfolks in the region have to trudge miles to get a few buckets of potable water from streams, but most of the time they fail to get water due to scorching environment. The small rivers and streams and either dried up or their water not fit for consumption due to contamination, social activists working in the area alleged.
The elected people's representatives and the district administration must work in coherence to mitigate the grievances of the displaced persons who have lost their home and hearth.
ReplyDeleteYes, you are right. We should work unitedly to exert pressure on the administration to solve the displacement issue and bring relief to the people. Thank you for your comment.
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