Odisha villagers protest over NTPC ash pond pollution

Sundargarh: Locals on Tuesday protested opposing increasing pollution caused by ash pond of NTPC’s Super Thermal Power Project (STPP) at Darlipali in Odisha’s Sundargarh district. 

Aggrieved villagers of Barobaga and Alupada, the affected villages in Sundargarh, staged a protest in front of district collectorate for the fourth time against the NTPC’s ash pond. Hundreds of women agitators under leadership of Himanshu Sekhar Sarangi, a youth leader, gheraoed the collectorate protesting NTPC’s alleged monopoly and administration’s negligence.  

As per their allegations, the NTPC has acquired approximately 70 per cent of land at Barobaga and Alupada villages in Lephripara tehsil for Darlipali project. Instead of displacing the villagers from their houses, the company is constructing an ash pond at their locality. The villagers are facing challenges for their survival due to radiation, ash pond pollution that affected the agriculture, caused respiratory, heart, kidney diseases and heavy vehicle accidents. 

The villagers have been raising questions about construction of ash ponds on 400 acres of land nearby without displacing the affected villages.

Even a month ago, expressing surprise over it, the NRIs wrote to the Government of India. They said in the letter that proper work needs to be done on displacement of villagers in Sundargarh district citing the activity as an ‘anti-people’. 

Acting on the letter, a central team visited Darlipali and took stock of the situation. Sarangi raised the issue before the team alleging that the NTPC put the villagers’ lives in danger not by acquiring land for producing 3,200 high capacity thermal power in four units and for an ash pond. The youth leader requested the central team to take steps to acquire the land immediately and displace the people of the two villages. The protestors demanded justice for victims who sacrificed everything in the interest of the country. 
Recently, the residents of Barobaga and Alupada staged a demonstration in front of the RDC Office in Sambalpur. As the administration did not take any step, the villagers resumed their protest today.