Paradip, Nov. 10: Twenty-five people, including five policemen, were injured when contractual labourers employed by Essar steel plant here fought a pitched battle with the company employees and the cops.

The angry workers barged their way into the company's office and allegedly beat up the officials. Later, they damaged the office and vehicles parked on the plant premises.

The police rushed to the site to restore order, but the trouble-makers retaliated and pelted them with stones. Five policemen, including Paradip police station inspector Bichitranand Samal, was injured as the mob resorted to brickbats. The agitate workers also damaged a police vehicle.

As a fallout of the violent clash, the steel project got disrupted today. Unruly sections of labourers fearing arrest have fled the plant site. Incidentally, contractual labourers form the sizeable bulk of workforce of the company. The injured also included security and company employees besides about a dozen of labourers.

With situation considerably tense at the site, authorities in a precautionary measure have beefed up security in and around the steel plant site with deployment of two platoons of armed police.

"Situation has been brought under control after the clash. The police are keeping tabs on the situation. No further untoward incident has been reported after the clash," said Paradip additional superintendent of police Madhabanand Sahu.

Tofan Swain of the Gramya Surakhya Samity espousing the cause of contract labourers charged: "Today's incident was the outburst of the contract labourers' growing anger against the company, which is perpetrating an exploitative policy towards the part-time workers. They are being lowly paid in gross disregard to central and state labour rules and legislation. Over 1,000 contract workers are yet to be paid their legitimate wages since past one year."

Five persons have been taken into custody so far. Though situation is tense, it has been brought under control, the police said.

A company official said: "A section of workers accompanied by goons took law in their hands and triggered violence. The company has already paid the pending dues to the workers."