 |
| POSCO Odisha now seems a distant dream. |
POSCO India, one of modern-era’s humongous
steel deal has finally shown signs of being over, for once and all. The
multi-billion steel manufacturing unit was to be set up at Jagatsinghpur,
Odisha which would have made the South Korean giant the largest overseas steel
merchant in Indian shores. But domestic opposition backed by suspicious foreign
support, coupled with a headless opposition has finally led to doom, a deal
that had left the whole Asia in awe.
It all began in 2005, when a MOU was signed between the then
South Korean regime and Chief Minister Naveen Pattnaik leading way to a $12
billion investment to set up a mega-capacity steel plant in the otherwise faceless
Jagatsinghpur district of Odisha. Right from the first day, the sheer size of
the deal had the whole world in envy and POSCO India was expected to add-on
great value to the mineral-rich yet poor state.
 |
| Kalinganagar Firing saw several casualties fueling unresty |
 |
| CMAS rebels trained weapons |
But, just like all good things, POSCO India was caught in
stranger tides, when the local residents of the project site remained
un-impressed with the idea of relocation and displacement, mostly citing lack
of adequate compensation for their loss. Dialogues began and failed and with
time slipping away, the state government tried use of force to evict the
adamant agitators. What resulted in was un-
necessary blood shed leading to
unwanted loss of life and also gave birth to the Chasi Mulia Adhivasi Sangha, a
promoted tribal body banner-ed to oppose forceful eviction of the affected mass.
A twist in the tale was introduced when in 2014 it was
discovered that foreign bodies with vested interest were funding the CMAS in its
objective of blocking the POSCO Odisha project. Though disturbing, but such a
report by the IB didn’t raise many eyebrows because such roadblocks were only
expected in a project involving such huge numbers. As a result, the cover of
CMAS and its premier Nachika Linga was blown off and the CMAS which was so far
projecting itself as people’s saviour was on hot heels.
Eventually, the CMAS drama was over with a mass surrender of
armed cadres and subsequently Nachika Linga was arrested. Land acquisition, which
was now moving with a snail’s pace had now gathered some pace. But the final
jolt was evident when PM Modi’s last visit to S.Korea had no mention of POSCO
Odisha, a topic which ruled bi-lateral talks for the last decade- suspicion was
born. The final air to this suspense was cleared today when POSCO India handed
over it’s 2nd floor, IDCO Towers office back to IDCO, and as we
complete this write up perhaps POSCO India is being shelved back, a dream that
was coming, kept coming and went away !!
 |
| POSCO India wears a deserted look. |
POSCO India, one of modern-era’s humongous
steel deal has finally shown signs of being over, for once and all. The
multi-billion steel manufacturing unit was to be set up at Jagatsinghpur,
Odisha which would have made the South Korean giant the largest overseas steel
merchant in Indian shores. But domestic opposition backed by suspicious foreign
support, coupled with a headless opposition has finally led to doom, a deal
that had left the whole Asia in awe.
No comments:
Post a Comment