Keonjhar: Hundreds of local women and men protested in front of the Narayani Rice Mill in Kuapashi village of Badapatana panchayat under Patna block of Keonjhar district Monday morning over pollution and other issues. The villagers threatened to lock the rice mill and continue with their protest if their demands were not met in the coming days. They shouted slogans against the authorities of the rice mill for allegedly spreading pollution. The villagers alleged crops in their farmlands and nearby cashew fields were destroyed due to the wastewater released by the mill.
Livestock have died of diseases after drinking the contaminated water, the poor villagers further alleged. People also demanded to free the land belonging to an elderly local allegedly encroached by the mill owner apart from employment to local youths. However, when asked, the manager of the rice mill could not reply to the allegations of the villagers.
