Forest clearance exercise for the proposed Posco project on at Nuagaon. Telegraph picture

Paradip, Aug. 8: The Jagatsinghpur district administration today claimed to have set in motion the private land acquisition drive at one of the villages coming under the proposed Posco steel project.

An estimated 2.11 acres of private land were acquired from the “willing” landowners. At the same time, those who handed over the land were paid the relief sum.

Bhubanananda Behera, who owned an acre of private land at Polang village under Gadakujang gram panchayat, today became the first person to give away the land in favour of the steel project.

Behera, 60, said: “I am happy to give away the land. I received Rs 17-lakh cheque against my land. Now, I am hopeful that both the government and the company would keep up its commitment to provide employment and rehabilitation package to our family.”

“Three landowners, who had handed over 2.11 acres, were compensated at Rs 17 lakh-per-acre relief as decided in the Rehabilitation Peripheral Development Advisory Committee meeting last year. We are optimistic that more private land would be acquired from the willing landowners,” said special land acquisition officer Nrusingha Charan Swain.

The steel project is stuck in periodic protests. People, however, are still insistent on revision of Rs 17 lakh-an acre-private-land-acquisition relief.

“As the forest clearance, betel vineyard-dismantling and prawn dyke-demolition are over in all respect in Gadakujang gram panchayat, our foremost goal is now to acquire private plots in a phased manner in the said gram panchayat,” said Kujang tehsildar Vasudev Pradhan.

“Polang and Noilia Sahi villages account for about 200 acres of private land with its owners armed with valid records of land rights. The landowners have already been served notices under the Orissa Land Acquisition Act. The notice receivers, who are given the right to object under the Act, are yet to register any objection. Therefore, we are hopeful that the process would get under way soon with people’s consensus at least at these two villages,” said one official.

The project territory accounts for 437.68 acres of private land, while a major chunk of the required 4,004 acres for the project comes under classified forestland.

However, impasse continued with the officials suspending the project related works. Treading cautiously in the face of protest, the officials preferred to suspend today’s scheduled work.

“Till the six-point demands are not met with, our opposition to the governmental exercise would continue. The government should pay respect to larger interest of the people, who are willing to give away their immovable assets to the steel company. Their demands need to be taken care of before resumption of further work,” said Nirvaya Samantaray, general secretary of the United Action Committee.

“The administration has already committed to fulfil the demands. However, people were insistent on its early fulfilment. The demands would be duly considered on August 24 at the advisory committee meeting,” said Jagatsinghpur collector Narayan Chandra Jena.

The six-point demands made by the United Action Committee included hike in the relief sum against the acquired betel vines, private and homestead land, inclusion of about 75 families who had deserted Dhnikia gram panchayat under the compensation scheme, relief coverage to the betel vines demolished in 2008, engagement of local people in the project and employment in the project from every family.