Women stand near the stems of trees chopped for the Posco project in Orissa. (AP)

Paradip, July 30: The police today registered a case against a senior officer of Posco India for allegedly heckling the crew of a private television channel.

“A complaint, lodged by Arun Ojha, reporter of a private TV channel, charged that S.N. Singh, deputy general manager, Posco, misbehaved and heckled his cameraman on July 25. Based on the complaint, a case has been registered against Singh. Veracity of the complaint is, however, being investigated,” said inspector in-charge of Kujang police station Gupteswar Bhoi.

Singh, however, denied the allegations.

On the other hand, the project related works today continued with the villagers’ cooperation. Around 1,000 forest-classified trees could be pulled down today due to technical snags. “Had there been no technical snag in the sawing machines, more trees could have been felled down. Moreover, we fell short of manpower. The exercise was carried out in the presence of the village forest committee members and the local people,” said special land acquisition officer Nrusingha Charan Swain.

In another development, dispute over ownership of the prawn gheries (dykes) in the Posco project villages has put the administration in a tight spot with the officials holding up disbursal of compensation payment.

While the survey, undertaken earlier, had identified a 298-acre stretch under prawn cultivation, the latest measurement came across more areas under prawn farming. It has become apparent that the villagers have erected new prawn dykes along the Nolia Sahi-Gobindpur zone for grabbing the relief doles.

“The Rehabilitation and Peripheral Development Advisory Committee has fixed Rs 2 lakh per acre for prawn ghery acquisition. Accordingly, the Industrial Infrsatructure Development Corporation has handed over nearly Rs 6 crore for the acquisition of 298 acres of the prawn cultivated area. But now, we find more areas under prawn cultivation. A section of people has apparently resorted to foulplay to hoodwink the officials. Therefore, the relief-payment process for the prawn dykes has been postponed,” said Kujang tehsildar Vasudev Pradhan.

“False claim for prawn ghery area acquisition would be rejected. Only those dykes, identified during the socio-economic survey in 2010, are entitled for compensation,” said additional district magistrate Saroj Kanta Choudhury.

About 150 workers, earlier engaged in betel vines and now turned jobless after dismantling of the vineyards, have so far been identified in the enumeration process. The exercise would continue to bring them under compensation and monthly subsistence allowance scheme, said the officials.

On the other hand, the project work made further progress today in the proposed steel project areas with the clearance of forest areas, enumeration of betel vine labourers and ancillary civil construction works.