Once again the tribal people of Orissa’s Kashipur area are facing the onslaught of the MNC, Utkal Alumina International Limited (UAIL), which is jointly owned by Aditya Birla of India and Alcon of Canada. This company is having the government’s permission for bauxite mining and Alumina plant due to which more than 30 thousand people mainly tribals of bordering areas of Rayagada and Koraput district from Kashipur, Dasamantapur and Laxmipur Blocks are likely to be evicted completely. For the last 12 years they are able to resist the entry of the company under the banner of Prakrutika Sampad Surakshya Parishad (PSSP). While resisting on December 16, 2000 three tribal activists became martyrs in police firing and many were injured at Maikanch village. But due to strong reaction from different quarters against the firing, the company had to slow down its activities. Lok Sangram Manch had mobilized support and called a successful South Orissa Bandh and organized a march to Kashipur.

But after a long silence of three years, the company and the government once again became active. A couple of months back the State government ordered the Revenue Divisional Commissioner to take opinion of the local people regarding the project. But the Commissioner, instead of taking opinion, has taken all steps for manufacturing opinion in favour of the project. Since then the Collector’s Office at Rayagada virtually became the liasoning office of the company. Though the effected villages have opposed the proposed plant through the Gramsabha and eight sarapanchs of the area have lodged their written opposition much earlier, the administration went on its move. Some local non-tribal youths has been employed by the company as motivators and communicators to canvass among the people to accept the project. But the tribal people showed their opposition by organizing a massive demonstration at Tikiri police station on October 19, 2004.

Meanwhile in September 2004 the government had taken some major decisions in the name of rapid industrialisation and amended the Industrial Policy of 2001. Considering all investments which are more than Rs.10 crores as major industry, it declared many tax reliefs and infrastructure facilities for them. Again, in early December in the Collectors’ and Police Superintendents’ Conference, Navin Patnaik openly ordered suppression of the anti-industry people. This encouraged the company people and they organized the Congress, BJD, BJP and BSP leaders of the District under the banner of an All Party Committee. They first met the CM and then organized a pro-industry rally at Tikiri on November 28, 2004. Then on December 1, the Collector, SP and company officials along with heavily armed police entered the proposed area to lay the foundation stone for a police outpost and approach road. The women of the area blocked their way. But the police was ordered to fire tear gas shells and then carried out brutal lathi charge on these agitating women. They even sent nine of them to jail. Now the entire area is manned by heavily armed police and paramilitary forces like CRPF. People are being arrested indiscriminately from buses and weekly markets. Raids are going on in different villages with hundreds of armed police. Even the people from outside Kashipur, who are coming to support the movement, are targeted.

Against these police atrocities CPI(ML)-New Democracy, along with other ML forces, held a big dharna on December 4, 2004 in front of Raj Bhawan and sent a solidarity team to Kashipur.

To commemorate the martyrs of December 16, 2001 firing, a martyrs’ meeting was scheduled at Bagrijhola. A delegation of leaders of several parties and organizations, including 2 MLAs, proceeded on December 15 to participate in the meeting to express solidarity with the Kashipur people struggling against the attacks of MNCs and police. This delegation was stopped at Tikiri by a group of goons (hired by Utkal Alumina) and the local police and was not allowed to proceed to the site of the rally. The members of this delegation were manhandled by the goons. The police, instead of taking action against the goons, took the delegates to the Tikri police station and detained them for over four hours before forcing them to return to Rayagada.

When the issue of violation of democratic rights of the delegation, including MLAs, was raised in the Assembly. Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik, made a statement on the floor of the Assembly on December 22, which instead of addressing the main issue of the violation of democratic rights of the delegates has tried to confuse the issue by connecting this visit with a group of Baghrijhola bound foreigners who were also detained at Tikiri police station on December 16, 2004.

Condemning this sinister propaganda, the parties and organizations blasted this diversionary tactic of the CM who has resorted to slanderous allegation to serve the MNC. They alleged that the state government, which is out to crush the people's movement of Kashipur at any cost, had systematically planned to connect the foreigners with the MLAs and other delegates who were going to express their solidarity with the fighting people of Kashipur. The Rayagada Police met these foreigners on the night of December 15 at Rayagada. It is intriguing as to why these foreigners were not detained at Rayagada itself and why were they allowed to proceed up to Tikiri. Thus it becomes clear that the state Government had hatched a conspiracy to malign the MLAs and the delegation.

They further highlighted that one of the foreigners, Mr. Joan Martinez Alier, attended the LAKE 2004 Conference, held at Hotel Swosti Plaza, from December 9 to December 13, 2004. This Conference was inaugurated by the Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik, who is also the Minister of the both Science & Technology and Forest & Environment. So could Prof. Alier be a stranger for the Chief Minister?