‘Info on land acquired by industries misleading’

SAMBALPUR: A recent reply from the Rengali Tehsil office to a query under RTI Act has opened a can of worms.

Having failed to get a response on the rampant pollution due to growing industrialisation in the block, Sarpanch of Rengali gram panchayat Laxmi Narayan Sahu had sought information on land acquired by the 10 industries besides land leased out for mining on July 26. However, the Public Information Officer (PIO) of Rengali Tehsil office in his reply informed that while no government land had been acquired by any of the industries, it did not have records on private/rayati land acquired for the purpose.

Alleging that the revelation by the Tehsil office is completely misleading and an attempt is being made to hide the truth, Sahu has said that while Bhusan Power and Steel Limited has acquired 505.91 acres of government land, Aditya Aluminium has been handed over 1,407.89 acres. Similarly, 448.4 acres of government land has been given to HINDALCO for coal mining at Talabira, while Shyam DRI has been handed over 112.65 acres of land.

Likewise Aryan Ispat and Viraj Steel have acquired 77.15 acres and 48.63 acres of land respectively for their projects in the block.

Clarifying that the land has been handed over by IDCO, Rengali Tehsildar Gyanaranjan Bhanjadeo said that no government land had been directly handed over to the industries by the Tehsil office. But the fact remains that it is government land, which was transferred to IDCO for use by the industries. Moreover, the process of transfer entails public notification. Under such circumstances, the refusal of the Tehsil office that no government land has been acquired by the industries is incorrect, said Sahu. He now plans to move the State Information Commissioner for a clarification on the issue.