Paradip, Sept. 23: The stalemate over the acquisition of seaside land encroached upon by slum-dwellers at Sandhakuda on the outskirts of this port town has been resolved.

With officials of the Indian Oil Corporation Limited sending a series of letters seeking possession of land at Sandhakuda for an oil refinery project, the Jagatsinghpur district administration has decided to pay compensation to the encroachers and ensure their rehabilitation in a suitable location.

“The entire encroached land at Sandhakuda is not being acquired at present. Only the portion required for the refinery project is being taken possession of. The number of families that would be displaced has been brought down to 132. Earlier, it was planned to evict all 434 families from the encroached government land,” said Paradip additional district magistrate Surajit Das.

The Jagatsinghpur district revenue administration has issued eviction notices to 132 families who are at present encroaching upon about 17 acres of seaside land on the outskirts of Paradip. The eviction drive would be carried out next month, said Das.