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The Rowghat iron ore mines – one of India's biggest iron ore reserves – that lie in the southern parts of Chhattisgarh, between the Narayanpur and Kanker districts, have yet again stumbled upon tribal opposition.
The protest, which was launched on Saturday, 26 March, in Khodgaon village of Narayanpur district has intensified into tribal villagers putting up a barricade to prevent the transport of mined iron ore.
The Rowghat Mining Affected Villagers, via a press release issued on Wednesday, 30 March, said that the Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) had received permission from the environment ministry to mine 3 lakh tonnes of iron ore per year in January 2022. They claimed that the BSP had also received permission to transport it through the roads, but that till date, the villages affected by the mining had not given their consent for the project, thereby making it 'illegal'.
Bhilai Steel Plant, an undertaking of the Public Sector Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) has been eyeing the iron ore under Rowghat mountains (estimated over 500 million tonnes) for its use since the 1980s.
However, speaking to The Quint, Samir Swarup, the chief general manager (Mines-Rowghat) of the BSP, claimed that they had all the necessary permissions and that the allegations raised by the villagers and their protest were baseless and wrong.
Speaking to The Quint, Sudduram Usendi, one of the protesters, said that the mining activity was affecting their livelihood and destroying their crops.
Another villager at the protest site said that all they wanted was decent schools, health, and fundamental rights. "We don't want to drink contaminated water, which is a result of the mining activity. That is why we are opposing it," the protester said.
In the press release, the villagers said that they had stopped a transportation attempt by the BSP's contractor, Dev Mining Company, and got the two trucks to empty out their loads in the middle of Khodgaon village.
"It is pertinent to note that as per clause A(xxii) of the Environment Clearance granted to the company, all trucks are permitted to run on these roads only during daytime, and any transportation during night is strictly prohibited," the release further said.
P Sundarraj, Inspector General of Bastar Range, however, claimed that there was no hindrance with regard to the ongoing mining project and that issues would be addressed by the authorities concerned.
In the last couple of days, the villagers have put up a barricade near their village border to amplify their demands, he said. "Though there is no hindrance with regard to the ongoing mining project, the issue would be addressed by the intervention of concerned authorities, so that the genuine demands of the villagers get resolved," Sundarraj added.
The custodian of the Sarv Adivasi Samaj Chhattisgarh, Arvind Netam, meanwhile, alleged that not only Rowghat, but all the mining projects in Maoist-affected Bastar had either been launched with fake gram sabha consents or with coerced ones.
(With inputs from Bindesh Patra.)
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