Four injured in clashes with police in Orissa
By IANSTuesday, March 30, 2010
BHUBANESWAR - At least four people were injured Tuesday in clashes between police and tribals in Orissa’s Kalinga Nagar industrial hub, officials said.
Clashes broke out between police and tribals opposing the construction of a common road for the industry in Kalinga Nagar in Jajpur district.
“Some people have sustained injuries. We used mild force to disperse the protesters. Some of our policemen have also sustained injuries,” Jajpur District Collector Pramod Kumar Mohanty said.
Rabindra Jarika, the general secretary of Bisthapan Viroddhi Jana Mancha (BVJM), said: “We had already discussed with the district administration that construction work will begin after consulting us. But they suddenly started construction work, so we are protesting.”
Anticipating trouble, the district administration had deployed 25 platoons of police force in the area.
“We have deployed 25 platoons of police and 60 officers in that area,” Superintendent of Police D.S. Kuttey said.
The 12,000-acre Kalinga Nagar complex, some 100 km from Bhubaneswar, has about 10 industrial units and steel plants. The BVJM is opposing the construction of common corridor road, considered the lifeline of the Kalinga Nagar industrial hub.
In January 2006, 14 people were killed in Kalinga Nagar when police opened fire during a protest by villagers against acquisition of land for industry.
