Land acquisition for Nanar project stayed

Mumbai: In a decision that is likely to provide relief to anti-refinery activists in Nanar, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday stated that the state government has stayed the land acquisition process for the project.

Speaking in the Legislative Assembly, Mr Fadnavis said that the decision to stay the land acquisition for the proposed plant was taken after consulting Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray. “The state government has not issued any new notice for land acquisition. After talks with the Sena president, the entire process has been stayed,” he said.

The issue was raised by Opposition leader Radha-krishna Vikhe-Patil, who said that police at Azad Maidan manhandled a journalist from an Engli-sh daily on Tuesday night while covering an agitation of anti-Nanar protesters against the upcoming refinery project. Replying to this, Mr Fadnavis said he would seek information in this regard and take appropriate action.

The Shiv Sena has been opposing the Nanar refinery project claiming that it is against the interest of the farmers and would destroy ecology in Ratnagiri district. The oil refinery project proposed to come up at Nanar village in Ratnagiri district has been
facing stringent opposition.

The anti-Nanar protesters created a flutter in the state Legislative Assembly as they raised slogans against the project after entering the visitor’s gallery. When the House proceedings were on, four protesters, including two women, suddenly shouted slogans like ‘Ekach Jidd, Refinery Radd’ and ‘Refinery Hatva, Konkan Vachva’ and demanded cancellation of land acquisition for the project. The protesters were detained by the Vidhan Bhavan security.

Shiv Sena, whose stronghold is the Konkan region, has been opposing the project vehemently, saying that it is against the interest of farmers and would destroy Ratnagiri district’s ecology. In April this year, senior Sena leader and industries minister Subhash Desai had announced in Ratnagiri that a government notification for acquiring land for the project in Nanar stood cancelled. However, Mr Fadnavis later refuted this.

The anti-Nanar protesters, under the banner of the Konkan Refinery Virodhi Samiti, have also been holding an agitation at Azad Maidan for the few days.