Tension has been mounting for last three days near the proposed plant site of South Korean Steel giant Posco at Paradip, about 100 kms from here.
BHUBANESHWAR: Tension has been mounting for last three days near the proposed plant site of South Korean Steel giant Posco at Paradip, about 100 kms from here.
Both anti- and pro-Posco activists are hurling bombs at each other, even as anti-Posco activists chopped off the hands of one pro-Posco supporter, Natabara Khatua, and fed it to dogs on Thursday. He has been admitted into SCB Medical College, Cuttack for treatment. In the melee, miscreants also burnt a betel field and paddy stockyards, resulting in loss of property worth Rs10 lakh.
While pro-Posco activists have started gathering outside Dhinkia, epicentre of the agitation, anti-Posco activities have started organised themselves in a more unified fashion. Though police have been deployed to curb violence, and a 15-member peace committee formed, they have failed to restore normalcy at the site.
In order to intensify their agitation, anti-Posco activists under the aegis of the Posco Pratirodha Sangram Samitee (PPSS) have formed as many as eight suicide squads. It is also planning to raise a woman suicide squad on the lines of LTTE. “We won’t allow Posco to set up its plant here,” said president of PPPS, Abhya Sahu. “If needed we will sacrifice our lives,” he cautioned.
Significantly, the suicide squads have been imparted training on fighting with swords, use of guns, hurling bombs, and shooting arrows. Police had recovered a large cache of arms and ammunition from the area a few days ago. Earlier, some villagers of Govindpur had taken an oath to oppose the Posco project.
District collector of Jagatsinghpur Dr PK Meherda said the administration had taken all measures to maintain law and order at the proposed site.
subhashish_m@yahoo.com
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