Villagers of Pardhiapali, Koindapali and Khuntapali stage a protest demanding compensation during the visit of the technical committee to the project site. Telegraph picture

Balangir, Sept. 4: A technical team comprising various senior officials of Odisha Construction Corporation and Lower Suktel Project visited the project site here yesterday amid protest by displaced villagers.

The officials visited the place where the spillway would be constructed and returned within 20 minutes without even getting down from the vehicle. The villagers, who were waiting to meet the officials to ventilate their grievances, were left disappointed.

People of three villages — Pardhiapali, Koindapali and Khuntapali — who were displaced by the project, said they would not allow any work at the site unless they were not compensated and rehabilitated to their satisfaction.

The villagers alleged that the state government was trying to go ahead with the project without proper compensation and rehabilitation of the displaced families.

They said that some villagers’ plots, which were situated at the site where the government was planning to construct the spillway, had not been acquired.

Narayan Bag, a villager of Koindapali, who lost both his home and land, said he had not been compensated properly.

“I have lost both my home and land for the project, but I was not given satisfactory compensation. The government began paying the compensation in 2004. Till date, no one in my village has received full compensation. We have not been paid the compensation of trees felled for the project, including the fruit-bearing ones. We had come here to tell this to these officials. But, they did not meet us,” Bag said.

Jitendra Pandey of the same village said they would not allow the project to come up until they received compensation and rehabilitation.

“The authorities will have to first pay us compensation and rehabilitate us properly. Only then will we allow them to construct the dam. We have no objection to the project. But if they ignore our demands, then we will fight for our rights,” said Pandey.

Recently, the Odisha government had declared on the floor of the Assembly that work for the project would begin from September 27.

“We visited the place where foundation and excavation will be done. We also visited the machine moving site and the road network of the project. At present, it is not possible to bring big machines to the project site. So, work for the spillway will initially begin using smaller machines,” said managing director of the construction corporation Janaki Ballav Mahapatra.

Chief construction engineer of the project Ramachandra Padhi said the grievances of the villagers would be looked into.

“Construction of the dam and compensation and rehabilitation of the displaced villagers will go on simultaneously. The work will begin on September 27. If any law and order problem arises, the administration will take care of it,” he said.