A day ahead of a meeting with Orisa chief minister Naveen Patnaik, who reiterated that project clearance is vital for both state and nation, Ramesh said: “The ball is now in the state government's court."
Ramesh's ministry has pointed to gram sabha resolutions of 2006 in the areas affected by the project, opposing it. Ignoring these ‘palli sabha' resolutions is a breach of the Forest Rights Act (FRA), the ministry and Ramesh have said.
In its recent reply to Ramesh's ministry on compliance with the FRA at the Posco site, the state government had categorically stated there were no tribals or other traditional forest dwellers in the designated area. It also maintained the palli sabhas held by Posco opponents were not valid, as they were not convened by the gram sabha secretary and the proceedings were not recorded. Read the full report here.
Source: BS Reporter, Business Standard, Bhubaneswar.
