From: Campaign for Survival and Dignity <[email protected]>
Date: Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 4:08 PM
Friends,
Please find below a letter from the POSCO Pratirodh Sangram Samiti, sent
today to the Minister for Environment and Forests. *The letter explains how
the Environment MInistry has reportedly broken the law, its own orders and
Minister Jairam Ramesh's assurances to Parliament, all in a desperate effort
to illegally hand over land to the multinational steel corporation POSCO.
Under section 7 of the Forest Rights Act, any such handover is a criminal
offence. *According to press reports over the past few days, POSCO has been
granted clearance to use 3,000 acres of forest land despite the fact that
these lands actually belong to people under the Forest Rights Act of 2006.
This has occurred despite the fact that the Ministry itself, after a year
and a half of protests, had issued orders in July 2009 clarifying that
compliance with forest rights is required before forest land can
be diverted for non-forest use. Moreover, the Minister had assured
Parliament as recently as December 7th that his MInistry would comply with
the Forest Rights Act. Yet, the illegal appeasement of corporations
continues.
Campaign for Survival and Dignity
**
*POSCO PRATIRODH SANGRAM SAMITI*
Village Dhinkia, Jagatsinghpur District, Orissa
To:
Shri Jairam Ramesh
Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Environment and Forests
Paryavaran Bhavan
New Delhi
Sub:- Reported grant of final (Stage II) forest clearance to
POSCO-India for proposed Jagatsinghpur steel plant; *grant of clearance is
in blatant violation of law and of Ministry’s own circular of July 30, 2009;
immediate withdrawal of clearance and action against concerned officials
required*
Dear Sir,
We are an organization of the people of the Jagatsinghpur area of Orissa,
where the multinational POSCO corporation plans to set up a steel plant on
4,000 acres of land (of which 3,003 acres is forest land). According to
news reports (cf. for instance *Economic Times, *January 2, 2010), the
Ministry has granted final clearance for diversion of this forest land for
the steel plant as of December 30, 2009.
*If any such final clearance has been granted, it is in blatant violation of
the law, the Ministry’s own orders and the assurances repeatedly given by
the Ministry and yourself to the press and to Parliament. It would appear
that the Ministry is actively colluding with corporate vested interests and
lying to Parliament and the people about its commitment to the law. *
Please note the following:
- The area technically classified as ‘forest’ proposed for the steel
plant has a large number of people who have been living and cultivating the
land for many decades, and who have claimed rights over it under the Forest
Rights Act.
- Section 4(5) of the Forest Rights Act bars the removal of any forest
dweller from their lands until recognition of rights is complete. This
section came into force on January 1st, 2008, when the Act was notified.
Section 3(1)(a) recognizes the rights of forest dwellers to lands that they
are cultivating. Moreover, sections 3(1)(i) and 5 empower the community to
protect community forests and their cultural and natural heritage. Section
7 further makes any violation of these provisions a criminal offence. *From
January 1**st**, 2008, it has hence been illegal to hand over forest land
to anyone without complying with these legal requirements.*
- On March 23rd, 2008, the gram (palli) sabha of Dhinkia village (the
statutory authority to initiate the process of recognition of rights under
section 6(1) of the Forest Rights Act) passed resolutions initiating the
process of claims for rights, and further demarcating the boundaries of the
village's "community forest resource" and declaring its intention to protect
it, including it’s resolve to deny consent to any diversion of this land.
This forest land cannot now be disturbed without violating section 5 of the
Act.
- On July 31st, 2009, your Ministry issued a circular in order to clarify
these statutory requirements,. *This circular clearly requires that no
diversion of forest land shall be approved without certification from the
State government that the process of implementation of the Forest Rights Act
is complete in the area (please note that complete implementation is
required, not merely a claim that there are no eligible persons, which
undoubtedly the State government has made). Moreover, the consent of the
gram sabhas of the area to the diversion is required. The same has already
been denied by the Dhinkia gram sabha and no further request for its consent
has been received. *
- As recently as the debate in the Rajya Sabha on December 7th 2009, *you
had cited this very circular to inform Parliament of your Ministry’s
commitment to complying with the Forest Rights Act. *The Ministry is
fully aware of the applicability of this law to this area and the legal
requirements for it’s diversion. The resolutions of the Dhinkia gram sabha
were sent to the Ministry when they were passed in March 2008, and the issue
has been repeatedly raised by other political leaders. CPI leader Shri D
Raja has already written to the Prime Minister twice (16.5.2008 and
10.11.2009) on the fact that the allocation of forest land to POSCO is in
direct violation of the Forest Rights Act.
*In light of the above it is clear that, if final clearance has indeed been
granted, the Ministry is engaging in direct illegal collusion with a
multinational corporation. The public statements from the Ministry can then
only be interpreted as blatant lies. In this context we call upon you to
immediately withdraw any such clearance and take action against those
responsible for granting it.*
Sincerely,* *
Sd/-
(Prashant Paikray)
**
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