Salkhan: Policy first

Jamshedpur, March 31: Appreciating the Centre?s decision to frame a ?uniform rehabilitation policy?, Adivasi Adhikar Morcha?s chief convener Salkhan Murmu said a policy be framed before the land acquisition for industrialisation begins.

The poor, especially from the tribal community, should be consulted before the acquisitions begin as such people are deprived of their land during industrialisation, he said in a news conference at his Kadma residence today.

The policymakers concerned frame the rehabilitation package keeping the interests of the industrial houses and, in the process, Murmu added, the poor are often left fending for themselves once they become homeless. He opined that the government considers such factors while framing the rehabilitation package.

To avoid a repetition of a Kalinga Nagar-like episode, the chief convener said, the proposed policy should ensure that the displaced get justice and are not forced to go in search of their dues.

Referring to the compensation, Murmu said the government should also guarantee that the payment reaches the poor tribals, who lose their plots, and not unscrupulous and greedy politicians and middlemen.

?The government should frame its package in such a way that people are not displaced in the name of development, as it has happened in previous occasions, and in the process violate Article 21 of the Constitution.?

Moving away from rehabilitation, Murmu criticised the NDA in the state and the UPA in the Centre over the recent offices of profit controversy.