Dharna by Kalyan Ashram in Bhubaneswar
DEMANDING a provision of 26 per cent profit sharing in all mines in the MMDR Amendment Bill 2011, the Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram activists staged a dharna in Bhubaneswar on November 20. The protesters also staged a demonstration outside of Raj Bhavan and handed over a memorandum to the Governor.
Kalyan Ashram state president Shri Lachhaman Nayak dragged the media attention by talking on the key issues and problems that the Vanvasis of Odisha are facing. He pressed upon the displacement of Vanvasis by mining activities and demanded 26 per cent share in profit. He said mining activities in these areas affected millions of Vanvasis depriving them of ‘land’ and ‘forest’, which are the only source of their livelihood. The ineffective rehabilitation and resettlement policy of the Centre has only settled 25 per cent of the displaced people, whereas the mine owners and corporate houses have earned millions of rupees from these resources, without bothering about the miseries of the affected people of those areas, which has given rise to unrest in the Vanvasi areas. To restore normalcy in those areas a move to amend the MMDR Act 1957 was started three years back. (FOC)
