31th October 2022
The Adivasi community of Odisha’s Sundargarh district are agitating against the illegal acquisition of their land by the Dalmia Cement Company. Members of five panchayats – Kukuda, Alalnda, Kesramal, Jhagarpur, and Ketang undertook a 100 km padyatra from Rambhal to the District Collector’s Office, where they spent the night out in the cold demanding to meet the collector, who did not meet them through the night.
The All India Lawyers Association for Justice AILAJ has issued a statement in solidarity with struggling adivasis criticising the apathy of the State, which, instead of striving to reduce inequalities, is striving to deprive communities of their very livelihood by illegally allocating 750 acres of land to Dalmia Cement Co. The State, in acting like a profit-motivated company, has refused to listen to the Adivasi community, who are running from pillar to post in pursuit of justice. The State is displacing 60,000 tribals from 57 villages, who will be deprived of their homes and employment. The land to which the people are tied is not only a source of their livelihood, but is an intrinsic part of their culture and traditions. The communities derive their lives and identifies from this land, which they have lived on for generations.
It must be noted that in order to justify depriving persons of their right to property, the State must acquire the land legally and for a public purpose. In the present instance, there is no public purpose at all or any legality in the acquisition that justifies violating the constitutional rights of the tens of thousands of persons.
The Adivasis, who have inherited the land from their foremothers, have a right to the land, which the State is blatantly snatching in the name of profit. The Government’s true motivations are not oriented towards its people, but is run like a business. We demand that the Odisha Government puts an end to the illegal acquisition and attack against the very right to live with dignity of the community.
