File picture of a farmer working on his betel vine farm in the proposed Posco project area of Jagatsinghpur

Bhubaneswar, May 7: The state government today decided to resume land acquisition for Posco’s 12-million-tonne greenfield steel plant project from May 18.

“The Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) and Jagatsinghpur district administration will jointly take up land acquisition work from May 18,” Priyabrata Patnaik, nodal officer for the Posco project, told reporters here today.

The Telegraph had published a report on May 6 quoting the local block development officer (BDO) stating that the land acquisition exercise would resume from Bhuiyanpal and Polang villages under Gadakujang Gram panchayat within a week.

“Betel vines in the encroached land would be demolished. But for the acquisition of this land, consent of betel vine owners would not be sought as the land is encroached upon. The owners, however, will have to give a written undertaking before getting the compensation cheque,” Ersama BDO Muralidhar Swain had told The Telegraph.

Patnaik told reporters here today that government forestland, on which betel and prawn cultivation was being undertaken, would be acquired first.

“Measurement of such category of land will be carried out first and compensation will be paid to the occupants on the spot,” he said.

Patnaik claimed that by and large, villagers in the proposed project area were in favour of the Posco project and were willing to hand over their land for the project. “A handful of people are opposing the project,” he said.

The nodal officer made it clear that the private land in Dhinkia area would not be acquired for the Posco project.

Dhinkia area happens to be the epicentre of the anti-Posco movement which has become virtually out of bounds for the state government and Posco officials.

Out of the total 4,004 acres of land identified for the Posco project, around 435 acres belong to private individuals. Of these 435 acres of private land, around 300 acres are located in Dhinkia area.

The Union ministry for environment and forests (MoEF) had accorded final clearance for diversion of 1,253 hectares (around 3,132 acres) of forestland for the Posco steel plant project on May 2, clearing the decks for land acquisition.

Land acquisition process for the Posco project had started from Gadakujang gram panchayat on July 15 last year. But it was put on hold on August 3 following a directive from the MoEF on the basis of a joint committee report that confirmed violation of forest rights in the area.

During the fortnight-long acquisition drive last year, nearly two acres of forestland was acquired from 97 betel vine growers. The administration had paid Rs 1.36crore as compensation sum to the land-losers, according to official sources.

Patnaik, who also heads the state-owned IDCO, said: “Now, there is no hurdle on the part of IDCO in acquiring land.”