om e 's Ali a - Land ss De elo en - Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, India Office

factory owner and administration
kept trying to break the unity
of the villagers, but the villagers
remained united against the factory.
Nadi Ghati Morcha, a people’s
organisation kept pressurising the
administration and the industrialist
for a dialogue and also mobilised
other mass organisations, academics,
and concerned citizens to intervene
in the interest of villagers and
protection of the environment.
The villagers’ struggle faced the
brutalities of criminals hired by the
factory owner and administration.
Organised Response
The factory administration
announced work on the factory
would start on 15 August, 2004.
The entire village gathered at the
dharna site from 14th August and
blocked the road to the factory.
Police lathi charged villagers to
clear the road and help factory
owner start work. Many villagers
were injured. Leaders of the village
were arrested. Later villagers
demonstrated before the police
station and forced the police to
release those arrested. Despite
using force work on the factory
could not be started.
A Dam on Kelu River has Repercussions for Raigarh
Construction of a dam and the exploitative use of water from Kelu river as well as
underground sources has affected livelihood of the local people in Raigarh district of
Chhattisgarh, and has also created a threat to the drinking water needs of the people of
the Raigarh city and adjoining villages. The exploitation of Kelu river is a classic example
of how common property resources such as water are being controlled by corporates,
affecting livelihood and even basic human needs of drinking water critically.
Jindal Strips and Power Ltd., earlier known as Jindal Strips Ltd., started operations in Raigarh
in the early 1990s with the construction of a 500,000 TPA steel plant. The company
gradually increased its presence by acquiring coalmines, chromium ore mines and iron
ore mines for captive use. For its industrial activities, the group also established a captive
power plant. At the start, the 75 MW power plants were dependent on groundwater
extraction through reservoir tanks and borewells. In 1995, the Jindal Group proposed to
draw water from the river Kelu for its captive power plant requirements.
The Kelu, a tributary of the Mahanadi, is a 95-km-long perennial river in the district of
Raigarh and the only source of water for the over 100,000 residents of Raigarh town and
numerous villages spread along its banks. In 1996, the district water utilisation council
denied the company access to the Kelu on grounds that the river would not be able to
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