RAIPUR: At least six police personnel including an inspector and a sub-inspector sustained injuries after a violent clash broke out between authorities and a section of villagers near Salhi village of Udaipur area of Surguja district on Thursday morning, October 17.
The violent confrontation broke out after a section of villagers armed with bows-arrows, wooden sticks launched an attack on the authorities opposing the sanctioned deforestation drive in the area required for the Parsa coal mining project, resulting in injuries to over a dozen people.
The injured policemen were later taken to Udaipur CHC for treatment, while one of them has been reportedly referred to Raipur after receiving grave injuries in one of his legs.
It’s been learned that a section of villagers had gathered at the site on Wednesday night and indulged in a violent confrontation with the police on Thursday morning prompting the authorities to take appropriate measures to disperse them. Following the brawl, additional forces have been deployed in the area to prevent any further escalation.
Notably, a section of villagers led by a few NGOs have been opposing the felling of tress, raising environmental related concerns for long. Though contrary to their claims a significant chunk of locals is in favor of opening of coal mining projects in the area citing that the same will pave way for holistic development in the area along ensuring employment opportunities to them.
It is noteworthy, that earlier the villagers of Udaipur development block of Surguja on August 2 participated in a “Jan Sunwai” (Public Meeting) of Chhattisgarh Environment Conservation Board and extended their support to the proposed Kete Extension Open Cast Mine Project, another such mining project, claiming that such a project will boost employment opportunities for the locals along boosting health and education facilities.
The said gathering was attended by hundreds of villagers of Udaipur development block including of areas such as Kete, Parsa, Basen and Chakeri and other villages which concluded with a consensus that opening of mines in the area will benefit the residents.
स्थानीय आदिवासियों ने जनसुनवाई में बढ़-चढ़ कर हिस्सा लिया और खदान खुलवाने के लिए अपना समर्थन दिया I#chhattisgarh #hasdeo #hasdeo_model #savehasdeo #mining #coalmining pic.twitter.com/7tvs22UQWs
— HasdeoVision (@HasdeoVision) August 2, 2024
During the public hearing. the officials of the Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Limited (RRVUNL), a unit of the Rajasthan government allotted with the mining project in the region since over a decade assured that the corporation will bring prosperity to the local residents.
Significantly a number of villagers had earlier approached the state’s Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai and the district collector with a memorandum, appealing to hold the public hearing on time.
“With the commencement of the Kete Extension coal block project, there will be holistic development of the region, with better scope in education, employment, and health, besides the expansion of other basic amenities for the people. We have witnessed this in the earlier project,” stated the memorandum signed by a number of village heads (Sarpanch) and other villagers.
