Odisha govt to return land taken for Tata project, after 26 years

The 206 acres of property near the Gopalpur coast in Ganjam district that the Odisha government had previously acquired for a Tata Steel plant would now be returned to the original landowners, according to officials.

For the projected plant, the government purchased more than 6,900 acres of land in Kalipalli and a number of other villages in 1996. However, the project was never successful.

At a cabinet meeting presided over by chief minister Naveen Patnaik, the decision was made to return the 206 acres of land to the original owners or their legitimate heirs.

“In consideration of the public interest, the government has decided to return 206.685 acre of land which remained unutilised for the last two decades,” chief secretary SC Mohapatra said after the meeting.

He added that the land will be handed over to the original owners or to their legal heirs as per the provision of Rule 20 of Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition.

Though the land losers were compensated, the government has decided that the amount paid to the affected people would be waived, Mohapatra said.

Former Chhatrapur CPI MLA Narayan Reddy, who had organised the demonstration against the proposed steel mill, claimed that the return of 206 acres of land was enough.

He said, “The government should return the remaining unused land to the people. The land was acquired using strong-arm tactics and people suffered for more than two decades. Neither the steel plant nor the proposed employment of over 2,000 people happened”.