Jajpur: Villagers, mostly belonging to various tribal communities, in two villages of an equal number of panchayats under Gondia Tehsil of Dhenkanal district have alleged illegal encroachment of their land and brazen environmental pollution by a private crusher and metal quarry unit situated dangerously close to their settlements. This place where the private unit operates is located near Chadheidhara Square in adjoining Jajpur district. Residents of Nuakastipal village under Nihalprasad panchayat have alleged that the privately owned entity has encroached upon two fallow plots in setting up its crusher units at a distance of about 200 metres from their village. They claim the dumping of soil by the firm on the encroached land has also resulted in the destruction of some patches of land allotted to 61 tribal families (one guntha each) under Vasundhara Yojana. Sources said in 2022 the affected villagers had lodged a formal complaint against the private entity with the Dhenkanal Collector. Additionally, they had filed writ petitions (32212/2022 and 34205/2022) in the Orissa High Court, seeking a demarcation of the land they had received under Vasundhara Yojana. Acting on the petitions, the High Court had, November 30, 2022 (and again December 16, 2022) directed the Gondia Tehsildar to identify and demarcate the plots within a period of two months. However, the Tehsildar is still to act though two years have passed since the high court issued the direction, the tribals alleged. Not just residents of Nuakastipal, residents of Srimantapur village under adjoining Bega panchayat have also alleged that the private entity was initially granted temporary permission to run the crusher unit and quarry. However, the company has allegedly exceeded the permissible mining limits tenfold, extracting large quantities of black stone daily and transporting thousands of truckloads of metal to Jajpur district, leading to loss of state revenue to the tune of crores of rupees. The residents alleged that the crusher unit which is operating around 200 metres from residential areas in violation of safety norms is causing perpetual air pollution which is contributing to the spread of various chronic and respiratory diseases in the area.
However, despite repeated complaints, administrative inaction persists, forcing affected families to continue their fight for justice. Additionally, the use of explosives for blasting operations on agricultural land, aided by heavy machinery and wagon drills, is causing significant damage to their homes. They alleged that the blasting also poses fears of an imminent explosion in the gas pipeline laid by Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL) just 100 meters away from the crusher unit. They said they had approached the district Collector over these complaints following which the latter had formed a committee to conduct an investigation. The Collector had also issued a letter, dated- February 16, 2023, directing the Gondia Tehsildar to shut down the crusher unit and relocate it elsewhere. However, no administrative action has been taken so far though more than 18 months have elapsed. The administrative inaction has led the villagers to suspect a tacit understanding between some officials and the private entity.
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When contacted, Gondia Tehsildar Satyajit Mahapatra claimed that he was unaware of the allegations pertaining to the crusher unit and mining operations on tribal land. “I assumed office only two months ago,” he said, adding that necessary steps will be taken following a review of documents. Meanwhile, allegations have surfaced that the crusher unit is illegally procuring black stone from nearby areas and processing those into chips and metal. When quizzed over the reports, Jajpur Deputy Director of Mines Jayaprakash Nayak said directions have been issued to Tehsildars to take action against the crusher unit.