Tribals restive in Rourkela as ‘long-drawn battles to reclaim our land seem to have no end in sight’

Tribals threaten economic blockade over land acquisition: ASC president Deme Oram says unutilised land acquired for Indian Railways project should be returned to tribals; RSPMYDC backs call.

The Anchalik Surakshya Committee (ASC), at the forefront of a movement to reclaim land acquired decades ago for an Indian Railways project, has threatened economic blockade if their demand is not met.

ASC president Deme Oram, addressing a gathering of tribals who lost their land in the Bandomunda area in Rourkela’s outskirts, said that the vacant land, originally acquired for an Indian Railways marshalling yard project, rightfully belonged to the tribals and should be returned to them.

Approximately 1,000 families of the original inhabitants continue to hold on to the land, which is officially designated for railway projects but remains unused, Mr. Oram said.

“We have met government officials umpteen times, staged peaceful agitations, moved the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST), and again approached government officials to execute the NCST’s order, which says the unutilised land be restored to tribals. The long-drawn battles to reclaim our land seem to have no end in sight,” he said.

“More than 3,500 acres of land belonging to tribals have been acquired at different points of time for various railway projects. The Indian Railways has failed to use the land even after six decades. On numerous occasions, we tried to find the answer — what was the hurry to displace tribals?” Mr. Oram asked.

He further alleged that the land was acquired illegally as acquisition laws were not applicable to Sundargarh, under which the land fell, since it was a princely State at the time.

The Rourkela Steel Plant and Marshalling Yard Displaced Committee (RSPMYDC) backed the call for economic blockade saying the State government had failed restore the unused land to the tribals, who were the rightful claimants.