JSW Steel Plant: Orissa HC Directs Committee To Revisit Project Village In Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur

Cuttack: The Orissa High Court on Wednesday directed a five-member committee formed by it to revisit Dhinkia village, a part of which is included in the  proposed JSW integrated steel plant, in Jagatsinghpur district and make an assessment of the ground situation.

A division bench of the High Court, comprising Chief Justice S Muralidhar and Justice R K Patnaik, directed the committee to visit the village on March 5 and submit its report on March 8. The bench set the next hearing of the case on March 11.

The High Court issued the order after the committee members on Wednesday submitted four reports separately of their last visit to Dhinkia. The bench observed the villagers could not interact with the committee members freely last time due to some incidents.

In order to facilitate the villagers, including the project supporters and those opposing it, to express their views freely and without fear, the committee, comprising lawyers of three petitioners and two government advocates, should meet them again amid adequate security, it added.

The bench also directed the district collector and the district SP to ensure that no untoward incident takes place during the visit of the committee members and make video-recording of the entire proceeding.

Following an earlier direction of the High Court, the committee members had visited Dhinkia to make a ground-level assessment on February 19. But a clash took place between the supporters and protesters of the project during their visit.

In January, the police resorted to lathi-charge on the villagers, who were protesting the drive to demolish betel vines in the proposed plant site. Several villagers were injured. Later, three villagers filed petitions in the High Court against the alleged police action.