BHUBANESWAR: Even as local resistance to land acquisition for the Posco steel project gathered momentum, Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh advised the State Government to ensure that land is acquired in a “peaceful and law-governed” means.What has come as a further embarrassment to the State Government i s Ramesh’s statement that environmental clearance for the project cannot be used as a licence to forcible acquisition of land. “As I have often said that environmental and forest clearance process should not be used to fight other battles that have to do with important issues like land acquisition, compensation and livelihoods,” Ramesh said.The Posco project was given environmental and forest clearance by the ministry after a great deal of thought and careful balancing of various factors, he said. “However, I hope that the State Government will not use this clearance as a licence to forcible acquisition of land. This was neither the intent nor the purpose of the clearance given by the ministry,” he said.Villagers of Gobindpur in Dhinkia block, who have refused to give away their land for the steel plant, formed a three-tier human barricade at the entry point. Even women and children formed a cordon to stop officials.Land acquisition for the project has been suspended till June 17 for Raja celebrations.The State Government has declared the protests as “unlawful” and re-deployed about 800 personnel in the area. “While all parties should adhere to democratic norms and procedures, I earnestly hope that the State Government will not take any precipitate action,” Ramesh said.Dialogue and discussion, not coercion, is as essential to ecological security as it is to democracy, he added.
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