The groundswell of public opinion is firmly against South Korean steelmaker Posco. Of the 536 farmers whose lands are to be acquired for the proposed Rs 32,000-crore integrated steel plant, 365 have said a clear 'no' . Just 25 farmers have agreed to hand over land provided they are paid a compensation of Rs 25 lakh per acre. The proposed compensation could be between Rs 4 lakh and Rs 8...
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POSCO: take land but give life by Sunita Narain
The sight on television was heartbreaking: children lying in rows in the searing sun to be human shields against the takeover of their land for Korean giant POSCO’s mega bucks project. Facing them were armed police sent by the state government to assist in the operation. The steel plant and port project, located in a coastal district of Odisha, has been in a six-year-long eyeball-to-eyeball battle with people whose land will...
More »Power centre or toothless body? by Akshat Kaushal
Why is the ruling party unable to pass 3 very important bills? The National Advisory Council draws its exalted status from the fact that UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi heads it. But its inability to get its way on three new Bills indicates that its influence is waning. A couple of weeks ago, the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (NAC) cleared the drafts of two significant Bills — the Food Security Bill and...
More »Land Acquisition Act has become an engine of oppression: court by J Venkatesan
What farmers get are lathis and litigation, observes Justice Ganguly The Supreme Court on Tuesday expressed concern over misuse of the Land Acquisition Act, a colonial law, by all States to acquire land from farmers for development in the guise of a ‘public purpose'. A Bench of Justices G.S. Singhvi and A.K. Ganguly said that in the name of globalisation and land development the States had marginalised farmers by paying a pittance...
More »Posco faces hurdles in Karnataka too
-The Business Standard The farmers in Halligudi of Mundargi taluk in Gadag district are firm on their stand to not part with their land to make way for the Posco steel plant. They have taken serious exception to industries minister Murugesh Nirani’s claim that farmers had volunteered to hand over land to KIADB in lieu of the compensation amount and employment, President of Mundaragi Taluk Abhivruddhi Horata Vedike Y R Goudar said no...
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