Bhubaneswar: The Odisha unit of the Congress Thursday demanded strict implementation of the PESA Act and other related legislations to mitigate the displacement problems faced by the people because of industrial projects.
The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, or PESA Act, empower Gram Sabhas in Fifth Schedule areas to protect the tribal community from being removed or alienated from their lands.
Members of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC), led by its president Bhakta Charan Das, staged a demonstration here, raising the issues faced by people displaced by various industrial and mining projects in the state.
“We are not against a particular company or industry. The government is snatching the land from poor people for industrial projects without following the existing laws,” Das said.
The people have the first rights on water, forest and mines, and they should benefit from it, he said.
“Why only the company and government will reap the benefits, and people become the losers? The affected people should be made shareholders in the industry,” the Congress leader said.
He demanded strict implementation of PESA Act, Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 and Forest Rights Act while commencing any industrial project.
Later, a delegation of the OPCC submitted a memorandum to Odisha Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati in this regard.
“We met the governor and submitted a memorandum seeking justice, rehabilitation and protection of the rights of displaced and affected families following the conclusion of the Gandhi Pathe Nyay Yatra,” Das said.
The Nyay Yatra of Congress began from Jagatsinghpur district May 12 and concluded Thursday.
In the memorandum to the Governor, the party demanded that companies should be legally required to spend one-third of their income on the rehabilitation, resettlement, and adequate compensation of displaced people. Necessary amendments should be made to CSR rules for this purpose, the Congress said.
The party also urged the government to allocate one-third of the revenue earned from such projects for the welfare of displaced people.
