A betel farmer near Posco steel project site

Paradip, July 5: Many areas near the proposed Posco project are coming under betel farming after vineyards were removed from the project villages following land acquisition.

With the compensation amount against land acquisition in hand, betel farmers from Gobindpur, Nuagaon and other project villages have shifted their area of farming and taken to raise vineyards in the adjoining areas.

The betel farmers in neighbouring villages of Dhinkia are visibly upbeat. The number of vineyards has shot up steadily. With betel vine groves at the neighbouring villages being completely wiped out to pave the way for the steel project, Dhinkia has now turned into the hub of betel leaves trade as the government decided not to acquire land at this village.

There were hardly 350 vineyards, when the land acquisition process for Posco concluded last year. Now, over a thousand betel vines dot Dhinkia.

There are reports of displaced betel vine farmers from Nolia Sahi, Bhuyanpala, Polang, Nuagaon, Gobindpur and other villages acquiring sandy lands to raise betel vines. Besides Dhinkia, the preferred destinations for those, who lost out betel vines following land acquisition, are Andhurani, Kanabali, Trilochanapur and others villages in Kujang block. Investing the compensation amount, the displaced betel farmers are carrying forward their old occupation.

“I received compensation amount of Rs 5 lakh in lieu of two betel vineyard plots. I have decided to use the money in form of taking up betel farming yet again. With the help of local people, I have built a new betel vine at Dhinkia. The betel grove has begun production,” said a Gobindpur villager, Tukuna Burdhan, whose betel plots had been acquired for Posco.

“I had lost betel vineyards and the income that used to be accrued from the betel leaves. But, I have managed to restart the farming. Many of the displaced betel farmers have also followed my suite,” he said.

Quite a number of betel vines growers from Gobindpur have entered into partnership with betel vines farmers from Dhinkia village.

They are getting good return from farming as betel vines from adjoining Gadakujang and Nuagaon gram panchayats were completely wiped out in the wake of land acquisition exercise, said Nirvaya Samantaray, a local villager and general secretary of the pro-Posco United Action Committee.

“It is a positive development. Some of the land losers have carried on with the betel farming. People’s endeavour to become self-reliant deserves kudos,” said Erasama tehsildar Sarat Kumar Purohit.