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

i.e. mixed population, urbanisation,
nearer to two state borders (Orissa
and Andhra Pradesh), availability of
raw material in Bailadila (which is
around 150 kms from Nagarnar),
connected with NH and railways,
water facility from Indravati river,
flat land.
The conflict between the
government and villagers started
with a chain of events. The first
event was, though the tribals did
not approve the proposal of land
acquisition in the gram sabha for the
steel plant, it was alleged that the
Collector issued a press statement
on High Way Channel (a local
newspaper) stating that the villagers
were in favour of the plant. On June
16, 2001 it was also alleged by the
affected villages that subsequently
the district administration
manipulated the records of the
meeting of the gram sabha. The
villagers claimed that the minute’s
book of the gram sabha, which
is normally kept in the panchayat
office, was taken away by the nodal
officer and then replaced some days
later with some of the pages missing
and a new set of minutes written.
The people approached the National
Commission for Scheduled Castes
Organised Response
and Scheduled Tribes (NCSS) asking
it to inquire into the matter, and
the local administration responded
to the Commission’s queries by
levelling serious allegations against
the people.
In spite of protests, complaints and
subsequent investigations by the
NCSS, NMDC in collusion with the
state officials contrived acquisition of
land in violation of the constitutional
mandates and the provisions of the
Land Acquisition Act itself. As the
local administration was disturbed by
the exposures a pre-emptive attempt
was made to terrorise the people
when activists were apprehended. As
people resisted the move, there was
a brutal lathi charge and even police
firing, injuring 45 people mostly
women. The administration was bold
enough to deny the entire incident
even though scores of people were
admitted to hospital. The district
administration along with the police
had lathi charged and fired upon the
people in order to make them abide
the unlawful intention of the state.
The NCSS on the basis of an inquiry
conducted under Article 338(5)
of the Constitution came to the
conclusion that the acquisition
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