Redress grievances of POSCO displaced people

New Delhi, Apr 13 (UNI) A voluntary agency, working among the people in Orissa, has urged the Central Government to impress upon the Orissa Government to adhere to all environmental norms and ensure rehabilitation of displaced people at Paradip, the site of proposed POSCO mega-steel project.

The Centre should prevent the state from violating environmental guidelines and denying local people a voice in a hearing on projects proposed by Korean steel giant POSCO which are set to displace seven villages in Kujanga in Jagatsinghpur district, said ActionAid, an NGO working among the fishermen in the area.

''Clearance for the project would not only mean the loss of homes and livelihoods but would also play havoc with estuarine ecosystems, protected forests and the migratory path of endangered Olive Ridley turtles,'' said the agency in a statement here today.

Public hearing should be conducted in all the affected villages in a systematic and transparent manner ensuring participation of everybody to eliminate suspicion from the minds of the people who would be displaced.

POSCO, the South Korean steel maker, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Naveen Patnaik Government for the establishment of the mega-steel plant.

The industry would be established in about 4,500 hectare inlcuding 1,000 hectare of private land to be acquired by the government on the sea shore at Paradip.

UNI