Bhubaneswar: The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has sought an action taken report from the authorities concerned into the death of a tribal man during a recent eviction drive in Odisha’s Rourkela city, an official statement said.
A 35-year-old tribal protester, identified as Ettua Ekka from Barkani village in Sundargarh district, died allegedly after coming under an excavator engaged in the construction of a railway line to the Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) on April 19.
Taking suo-motu cognisance of the incident, the NCST has issued notices to the district collector, superintendent of police (SP) and the officials concerned of the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) seeking a factual report and the action taken in response to the incident, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs said in a statement Thursday.
The RSP is operated by the SAIL.
The incident took place during a protest by the local tribal community against the proposed construction of a railway line by Rourkela Steel Plant, extending up to Dumertha, it said.
During the protest, a tribal villager was killed after being run over by an earth-moving machine. Subsequent unrest was also reported in the area, the statement said.
As many as 19 people, including 16 police personnel, were injured in stone-throwing by the agitators, sources said.
Earlier, a BJD delegation had submitted a memorandum to the NCST, through its regional office in Bhubaneswar, and sought its intervention into Ekka’s death.
PTI
