Land protest over Devcha Pachami coal block

the story So Far: The West Bengal government’s ambitious Deocha Pachmi coal block mining project at Mohammad Bazar in Birbhum district has run into hurdles over land acquisition and other issues. On February 20, nine people, including economist-activist Prasenjit Bose, were arrested at a rally to protest a project proposed by the West Bengal Power Development Corporation. Bail has been rejected, and Bose and others have been sent to judicial custody till March 1, when they will be produced in court again. On Monday, February 21, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced a sweet relief and rehabilitation package, and said there would be no forced acquisition of land for the project, which was awarded to the state by the Center in 2018.

What is the project?

The state government is planning to start mining in the Deocha Pachmi coal block, which is considered to be the largest coal block in the country, having reserves of around 1,198 million tonnes of coal and 1,400 million cubic meters of basalt, covering an area of ​​12.31 square metres. is spread. km, which is about 3,400 acres. There are about 12 villages with a population of over 21,000 in the project area, which include Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

However, the Rs 35,000-crore Bengal government project is facing opposition over land acquisition. The government has 1,000 acres of land, of which 300 acres is forest land, but the rest needs to be acquired to start coal mining.

Why are the locals upset?

Villagers represented by Birbhum Jomi Jeevan Jeevika o Prakriti Bachao Mahasabha (Birbhum Save the Land and Environment Protection Organization) have organized protests and rallies against the project, activists claim is a “misleading propaganda” that local people “land are ready to give “voluntarily”. Local people, mostly Santhal tribals, have close links with land, forests and waterways and depend on it for their needs. Activists said about the coal mining project Instead of engaging with the people over their grievances, they were being harassed along with the tribals and arrested under false and serious charges.Sayukta Kisan Morcha (which led the farmers’ agitation throughout the year along the borders of Delhi) Several other organizations have lent their voices to the protests and alleged police atrocities, including the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students’ Union, Bangla, Sanskriti Manch and teachers against the climate crisis. Experts, environmentalists and activists have joined the project. The concerns have raised the concerns and pitfalls of going ahead with plans for open cast mining of coal at a time when there are calls to cut fossil fuels to combat global warming. Also, the details of the project have not been made public yet; And environmental clearance is awaited.

What is compensation package?

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee insisted that the state needed a mining project, adding that it would create around one lakh jobs. The state government revised the relief and rehabilitation project, which will cost ₹10,000 crore to the exchequer, so that land losers can get a better deal. The Chief Minister claimed that out of 4,300 families affected by this project, around 1600 families have voluntarily decided to hand over their land.

Under the Revised Relief and Rehabilitation (R&R) package for the Deocha Pachami coal block, a person who owns land in the area will get 100% solatium as the cost of the land, twice the market value (i.e. around ₹13 lakh per bigha). ). “The built-up area of ​​individual houses to be provided to all households (with detached houses for all adult members of the family) has been increased from 600 sq. ft. to 700 sq. ft. Compensation in lieu of manufactured houses (for) Those who opt for money) has been increased from ₹5 lakh per family to ₹7 lakh per family as per the government, while the original R&R package provided for one job for one member of each family at the junior police constable level. In the revised package, people with higher qualifications will be provided with higher grade postings in police or equivalent postings in other departments. A total of 5,100 people will get jobs, the government said.

Along with this, long-term residents of the area who are not land owners will be provided land lease and compensation package, the Chief Minister announced. “The government will develop this project and no land will be given to private players. There are some mine owners who are trying to spread misinformation among the people. Despite this, if someone does not want to give the land then we will not force and develop the project except that part,” Ms Banerjee said.

Are the protests similar to those of Singur and Nandigram?

While Ms. Banerjee was in the opposition, she staged a massive protest against forced land acquisition in Singur, which forced Tatas to move out of the state with the Nano small car project. The land acquisition for the proposed chemical hub also turned violent in 2007 during the Left regime. The protests against Devcha Pachami come at a time when the Trinamool Congress government in its third term is trying to shed its anti-industry image and bring back jobs in the state and prevent mass migration of youth to other states.