An anti-Posco blockade in Jagatsinghpur. File picture

Bhubaneswar, May 13: A day after Posco offered to “give up” all attempts to acquire land at Dhinkia, it has yet to come up with a back-up plan on how to acquire alternative land.

Posco spokesperson Sashank Pattnaik said today that a meeting would be held tomorrow to “discuss the idea”.

“Any decision is likely to be announced after that,” he said, adding that any change of plan is unlikely to affect the project schedule.

“Construction in the particular area in question will begin from Phase III, which will happen at a much later stage. We hope matters will be sorted out by then.”

Pattnaik has not defined “later”. Posco India’s website, however, lists Phase III’s timetable to be “within three years of completion of Phase II”.

Again, Phase II is to be completed within three years of Phase I. While actual work has yet to begin, the website states it will start from January 2007 and continue till December 2010.

“We have paid for 1,135 acres of government land. The process of sanctioning land is under way and they should hand over the land soon,” Pattnaik said.

A district administration official also said Posco has yet to make any “formal” request on alternatives. “No formal request has been made. But adequate government land is available in the contiguous area,” he said.

If Posco chooses to give up the land at Dhinkia village, it would have to acquire another 400 acres in the contiguous area.

Even after yesterday’s agitation and the hostage drama on Friday, Posco officials are not sure if they wish to file an FIR.

Members of the Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti — the organisation spearheading the anti-Posco agitation — had taken three officials hostage on Friday.

The driver of the car, which was hired by the abducted officials, filed an FIR at Kujang police station yesterday. He named the president of the agitating organisation, Abhay Sahu, as the prime accused.