Odisha halts land acquisition for Posco steel plant, withdraws police force after protests

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has put off the land acquisition for Rs 52,000 crore Posco steel plant in Jagatsinghpur district today after protests by local villagers since the process resumed last week.

The police force deployed at the Gobindpur village near the Posco site will also be withdrawn for now.

The move comes a day after standoff between villagers and police when the cops allegedly tried to enter the village.

The agitators, including women and children, gathered outside the village demanding withdrawal of force and stalling the operation.

Stepping up the demand for withdrawal of police force from the area, Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) leader Abhay Sahu had launched a hunger strike yesterday at nearby Patna Hat, while a large number of children joined the demonstration after shutting down their schools.

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After being halted for more than a year, land acquisition for the showpiece steel plant in Odisha resumed on February 3.

The South Korean company's proposed 12 million tonnes per annum steel plant - the largest foreign investment in India - is to come up near the port town of Paradip.

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The local administration claimed to have earlier acquired about 2,000 acres of land in the region in 2011.

The government needs to acquire another 700 acres, mostly in Govindpur area, for the project.

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