Berhampur, Sept. 30: Nearly a thousand families at Nua Golabandha village in Gopalpur have sought intervention of the government authorities to resolve a problem they are having with the Air Defence Guided Missile Centre at Golabandha concerning land acquisition.

“We are not opposing the centre. But, we are protesting against the manner in which we are being humiliated. The Centre acquired 2,000 acres in Nua Golabandha and surrounding areas in 1984 to establish the facility. Subsequently, we were rehabilitated at nearby Kirtipur. Now, the army officials are asking us to vacate the land,” said J. Balaji, a resident of Nua Golabandha.

More than two thousand villagers of Nua Golabandha today organised a rally under the leadership of local MLA Pradeep Panigrahi and submitted a memorandum to the Centre through the Ganjam collector.

They urged the President, Prime Minister and Union defence minister to immediately intervene in the matter.

“The Centre has provided identity cards to us. Our relatives from outside cannot visit us without the army’s permission. As there is no cremation ground at our village, we are even cremating bodies in front of our houses, and now, we are being asked to shift out,” he said.

MLA Panigrahi said: “The army has backtracked on their assurance and raised some new objections to the rehabilitation settlements causing injustice to local villagers. There is a growing mistrust.”

“We demand that the rehabilitation of the Nua Golabandha villagers be made according to the government’s new rehabilitation policy. The ammunition depot should be shifted elsewhere. The road between Buxipalli and Golabandha, controlled by the centre, should be opened to the public,” said Panigrahi.

Lieutenant General V.K. Saxena, commandant, Air Defence College, said: “I cannot comment on the villagers’ rehabilitation. The land acquisition by the army centre is being conducted,” he said.