___________

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

The Centre would provide Rs716 crore under ‘Viability Gap Funding’ for infrastructure development of the PCPIR (Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region) hub to be set up at Paradip in Orissa.

“The Centre would provide this money in two phases. While Rs388 crore would come in the first phase of the project, the balance Rs328 crore would be provided by the Government of India in the second phase”, an official source told Business Standard.

The funds to be provided by the Centre under ‘Viability Gap Funding’, will be utilized for various infrastructure projects of the PCPI hub like six-laning of NH-5 (A), building a greenfield coastal corridor, construction of all-new greenfield road from Bhubaneswar to Paradip \and upgradation of port infrastructure.

The six-laning of the NH-5 (A) will be taken up in the second phase of the PCPIR project at a cost of Rs76 crore. The greenfield coastal corridor will involve an expenditure of Rs410 crore out of which Rs 264 will be invested in the first phase while the remaining expenditure of Rs146 crore will be incurred in Phase-II.

The construction of all-new greenfield road from Bhubaneswar to Paradip will be taken up at a cost of Rs190 crore while Rs40 crore would be provided by the Centre for upgradation of port infrastructure.

Meanwhile, the Orissa government has committed an expenditure of Rs1796 crore on infrastructure development for the PCPIR hub. Out of the envisaged expenditure of Rs1796 crore, Rs 754 crore will be spent on development of arterial roads, Rs 465 crore on water supply, Rs 410 crore on power distribution and Rs136 crore on canal upgradation.

The PCPIR project in the state would be set up on 284.15 sq km (70,214 acres) of land spread over Jagatsnghpur and Kendrapara districts. The PCPIR hub is expected to attract investments to the tune of Rs2.74 lakh crore.

Phase-I work of the project is expected to be completed by 2015 while the entire project is scheduled for commissioning by 2030.

Of the expected overall investment figure of Rs2.74 lakh crore, the lion’s share would come from the petroleum and petrochemicals sectors at Rs2.3 lakh crore followed by housing and allied infrastructure at Rs23,500 crore, external infrastructure at Rs13,634 crore and Rs3,500 crore each for chemicals & fertilizers and ancillary sectors.

The mega project is set to create employment for 6.48 lakh people which includes direct employment for 2.27 lakh people and indirect employment for 4.41 lakh others.

The turnover of this PCPIR hub is estimated at Rs4.23 lakh crore with an export potential of Rs 43,000 crore. The PCPIR hub is expected to generate taxes to the tune of Rs 42,000 crore and contribute six per cent to Orissa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

… This refinery cum petrochemical complex which needs 3300 acres of land, is scheduled for commissioning by March 2012.

The land acquisition process for PCPIR is on the fast track with the state owned Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation of Orissa (Idco), the nodal agency for the project having filed requisition for 90 per cent of the total land requirement in .

This is really great. Especially, the part about a greenfield coastal road.  Odisha has been demanding such a road for a long time. I think eventually it will run all the way from Dhamara-Paradeep-Astaranga-Konark-Puri-Baliharchandi-across Chilika to Gopalpur. From Dhamara to the North they can put this road together with the National Waterway.

Following is an excerpt from a report in indiablooms.

Apeejay Infralogistics Private Limited (AILPL), a 50:50 JV of Apeejay Surrendra Group, and UK based Eredene Capital PLC, on Thursday announced the opening of two new integrated Logistics Parks in West Bengal’s Haldia and Kalinganagar in Orissa’s Jajpur.

The strategically located facilities providing around 1.0 million sq ft of warehousing space represent combined investments of over Rs. 250 crores.

… Karan Paul, Chairman of Apeejay Surrendra Group, said , “West Bengal and Orissa – both states are attractive investment destinations with forward looking government policies that favour setting up infrastructure projects such as Logistics Parks. Located in the commercial hubs, I am confident that these two integrated facilities will boost trade not only in the two states but the region as a whole. ”

The facilities at Kalinganagar under phase-1 will include 120,000 sq ft for domestic and contract warehousing and 175,000 sq ft for open storage and project cargo. On completion the Kalinganagar complex will have capacity to handle over 2500 containers for EXIM and have covered warehouse of over 250,000 sq ft in addition to hospitality, commercial and retail space.

The 30 acre Kalinganagar Logistics Park is being set up with an initial operational area of 16 acres covering 10 acres for Inland Container Depot to handle 1500 EXIM containers and 22,600 sq ft of Bonded ware house.

The facility is equipped with the state’s first fully purpose-built Container Freight Station cum transport hub and warehouse facility specifically targeting the in-bound and out-bound cargo of the steel & mineral industry to provide a truly multi modal solution.

… Nikhil Naik, Director Eredene Capital PLC, said: “We are confident that both these Logistics Parks will play a key role in the development of the Eastern Region by adopting high standards in the supply chain network and by providing real value additions to customers.”

… Designed as gateways through which companies can manage their entire supply chain logistics the two Logistics Parks provide multi functional facilities for storage, distribution, transportation, ancillary support services and trade facilitation, all under one roof for end to end logistical support.

Although there are tons of newsreports on the Saxena Committee report on Vedanta which quote extensively from the allegations of the committee there is very little (and mostly soundbites) from the perspective of the Odisha government and Vedanta.

The following by Nilmadhab Mohanty (a senior Fellow, Institute for Studies in Industrial Development, New Delhi) is from http://business.rediff.com/slide-show/2010/aug/25/slide-show-1-a-few-disturbing-questions-in-the-vedanta-issue.htm. I am not sure I agree with all the points mentioned below. But it is one of the few articles that is from the other side and hence worth pondering.

The decision of Union Minister for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh not to grant Stage II forest clearance to the proposal of the Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC) for bauxite mining in Niyamgiri in Orissa has been welcomed in many circles, in particular by the environmental activists, for the protection it will provide to an ecologically sensitive area of the country and to the Kondh tribes (and Dalits) living in the area.

There are, however a few disturbing questions that need to be answered by the ministry in order to buttress the minister’s claim that the decision was an objective one with no prejudice or politics influencing it.

First, the manner and time-line followed in the decision-making. The Orissa state government seems to have applied for final clearance in August 2009.

The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) has been deliberating the proposal at least since November 2009. In addition to the information submitted by the State and the central government’s own agencies, it had the benefit of the recommendations made by a three-member expert group which submitted its report in February 2010.

FAC then asks for yet another committee under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, which is the nodal agency in the central government for tribal rights. The environment minister, however, appoints his own committee (the Saxena Committee) in the last week of June 2010.

Then the pace quickens: The environment minister writes to the law ministry on July 19 to obtain the Attorney General’s opinion if the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) apply its mind and decide in the light of the Supreme Court’s earlier decision giving forest clearance.

The AG replies promptly on the following day; Saxena submits report on August 16, FAC deliberates without much loss of time and submits recommendations on August 23, and the minister announces his decision with a 20-page reasoned order on August 24, 2010!

The must be a record in governmental working! The affected party, namely the Orissa government, is hardly given any chance to given an explanation to the MoEF.

In fact, the hapless Orissa officials seem to have met the minister on August 24 when he was in a tearing hurry to announce his decision!

Second, OMC’s proposal for forest clearance for the Niyamgiri bauxite mines is separate and distinct from Vedanta Aluminium Ltd’s (VAL) aluminum refinery project, although bauxite is meant for the refinery. Why have these two cases been mixed up in the minister’s order?

Forest clearance is a statutory requirement under the Forest Conservation Act 1980 and the FAC was deliberating on the subject on the request made by OMC/Orissa government and the minister is within his rights to act on their recommendation.

If VAL violated the conditions of its approval or even the Environment Protection Act, it could have been proceeded against separately.

After all, the MoEF’s eastern regional office had sent its communication reporting violations in May 2010. By combining the two issues the ministry gave the unfortunate impression that it was targetting Vedanta rather than dealing with forest clearance for Niyamgiri mines.

One of the major issues raised by the Saxena Committee and endorsed by the minister is the potential ecological and human costs of the mining project.

In fact, this is an issue which is relevant not so much during forest clearance procedure but more appropriately during the impact assessment study under the Environment Protection Act.

For Niyamgiri both ‘in principle’ forest clearance and environmental clearance had been given. Besides, the ‘in principle’ approval was given in October 2007, a month before the Supreme Court’s order on the subject.

Did the MoEF discover the ecological and human costs only after receiving the Saxena Committee report?

The main thrust of the Saxena Committee report and about the only valid reason for denying final forest clearance for the Niyamgiri mines appears to be the alleged non-recognition of the forest rights of the tribals and absence of consent from the concerned communities for diversion of forest land.

There seem to be a few complications on this issue. For one the Saxena Committee has given very liberal and wide-ranging definitions of ‘forest’ and ‘forest rights’ as per its interpretation of the Forest Rights Act. It is another matter that the interpretation of statutes is a responsibility of the courts, not of a committee appointed by a minister!

The Saxena Committee, for example, defines ‘forest’ to include ‘forest dwellers’ as well as ‘trees and wildlife’, literally overturning the Apex Court’s definition of ‘forest’ in the famous Godavarman case.

It also interprets communal and habitat rights of the primitive tribal groups to extend beyond their areas of residence to cover the entire eco-system.

Since the Forest Rights Act is a new piece of legislation these issues will need to be settled by the courts in due course of time, keeping in view the practicability of implementation.

In any case, the Orissa officials seem to have argued that they had complied with the legal requirements of the legislation (which, by the way, came long after the mining proposal was mooted) to the best of their ability.

Surely, Saxena and the MoEF cannot both be the prosecutor and the judge on this matter!

Also, what about development — both of minerals, which are the nation’s dormant resources, and the tribal groups, who inhabit the area?

 

From the Saxena Committee report (which is silent on this subject), it would appear that Mr Saxena would like them to continue as ‘forest dwellers’ in perpetuity so that they continue to enjoy their ‘forest rights’, living on roots and herbs and we continue showcasing their primitive tribal identity and abject poverty nationally and internationally!

Finally, what happens to the considerable investment that has gone into the industry?

Environmental and forest clearance procedures are about balancing the needs of development with those of conservation. To the extent possible the project proponents, including the state government, should be given an opportunity to correct the deficiencies. (After all it is the state government, not OMC/Sterlite-Vedanta, that has to settle the forest rights).

It is true that in extreme cases permission will have to be denied but that should have been before the start of the refinery when the required clearances were given.

To do so now will be unfair and damaging to the government’s reputation for objectivity.

Following is from Sreelatha Menon’s article in Business Standard regarding what violations the environment ministry claimed that occurred. 

The Saxena Committee has drawn up a litany of infractions at Niyamgiri by both Vedanta and the Orissa government.

The road leading up to the Centre’s denial of permission to Vedanta Alumina Ltd to mine for bauxite in the Niyamagiri hills of Lanjigarh has been lined with gross violations and misrepresentation by both the company and the state government of Orissa.

The NC Saxena Committee, set up by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, details the manner in which laws have been flagrantly flouted to facilitate a project that has been aggressively opposed by tribal groups in the area.

The panel’s findings show that the Forest Rights Act, Forest Conservation Act, Environment Protection Act as well as Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, which applies to scheduled tribes covered under Schedule V of the Constitution, have been the main casualties as far as the Vedanta project is concerned.

The alleged breach of laws by the company in collusion with the state government and made possible by the Centre’s neglect resulted in the company obtaining illegal possession of 26 hectares of village forest land without ever obtaining appropriate clearances. It was on the verge of launching mining operations the moment it received forest clearance, jeopardising not only the life and culture of the indigenous tribal groups, which are protected under Schedule V, but also in contempt of a statute expressly designed to empower tribal communities: the Forest Rights Act.

Felling the Forest Rights Act: The most blatant violation, the Saxena panel states, has been that of legislation drawn up specifically to give forest dwellers a voice. It also gives them the authority to agree or not to a project that affects the forests they lived in. In the case of the Vedanta project, the law just did not seem to exist. The state government chose not to consult gram sabhas of the villages or to issue any statement on their response to the Centre.

And in spite of this, 26 hectares of forest land has been in the possession of the company’s refinery and forest clearance for more forest land was pending for the mining project.

How PESA was ignored : According to the Saxena Committee, PESA , there was scant regard for the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas ) when it came to pushing the proposed mining lease for Vedanta. Indeed, the state government blatantly violated it.

This Act requires the authorities to consult elected village bodies such as a panchayat or Gram Sabha before the acquisition of land for any development projects located in tribal territories listed under Schedule V. Authorities also have to consult the Gram Sabha or Panchayat before resettling and rehabilitating those affected by such projects. None of this was done.

Stolen forests: The Saxena report lists several alleged irregularities by Vedanta in Niyamagiri. Occupation of village forest land for the construction of its refinery tops the list. On August 16, 2004, Vedanta Alumina submitted a proposal for the appropriation of 58.943 ha of forest land — 26.123 ha to set up a refinery at Lanjigarh and the remaining for a conveyor belt and a road to the mining site. The forest lands required for the refinery, in a number of small patches, traditionally belonged to the tribal and other communities in neighbouring villages.

However, while filing for environmental clearance on March 19, 2003, the company claimed that no forest land was needed and that there were no reserve forests within 10 km of the proposed refinery. The Saxena Committee says this claim was patently false, since the reserve forests are less than 2 km from the refinery site. Even the factory is located on forest land belonging to the villagers.

The Environment Ministry accorded environmental clearance to the refinery on September 22, 2004, on the basis that the project did not involve appropriation of forest lands. Since this clearance was acquired by submitting false information, it is invalid and should be revoked, the committee headed by Saxena had recommended.

EPA violations: The report also finds the company guilty of violating mandates of the Environment Protection Act (EPA). Environmental impact assessments required under the EPA are inadequate and do not examine the full implications of the refinery and mining project on the environment, particularly those related to hydrology. The report says no effort was made in the Vedanta mining project (and aluminium refinery) to solicit the informed consent of affected villages.

It says “the required number of public hearings’’ were not held and the” Environmental impact assessments, which contain data essential for informed decision-making and consent, were not made available. Even critical information, such as the fact that the project would occupy their village forest lands, was not disclosed.’’

In a 2003 public hearing, no member of the affected Dongaria Kondh tribe was recorded as being present—a basic violation of their right to consultation and informed consent. Besides suffering from the same shortcomings as the 2003 public hearings, a public hearing in 2009 for refinery expansion distorted and reinterpreted the proceedings: the official minutes of the meeting record that the project met with widespread community support, even though only one person out of 27 spoke in favour of the project.

Violator and polluter, too: When the environment ministry granted environmental clearance to the aluminium refinery, it was subject to strict compliance and identified a list of other key conditions for management of waste from the refinery. It also required that the company strictly adhere to the stipulations made by the Orissa State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB).

But in the course of the refinery’s operations between 2006 and 2009, Vedanta Alumina repeatedly failed to adhere to these requirements. Between 2006 and 2009, the OSPCB documented numerous instances whereby the company had failed to put in place adequate pollution control measures to meet not only its own conditions, but also those of the Environment Ministry. OSPCB findings indicate that the company commenced operations without the necessary systems to adequately manage waste and pollution. Some processing and waste management systems were not built or operated in conformity with applicable regulatory requirements.

Expansion without clearance: The most shocking violation on the part of the company has been its six-fold expansion of the refinery without even obtaining clearance from the ministry. It had received sanction to set up a capacity of 1 million tonnes, but it has gone on to expand to 6 million tonnes without any approvals. This was in spite OSPCB strictures to its January 12, 2009 memo, asking the company to immediately cease construction related to expansion of the refinery as it had not obtain the required permissions, including the environmental clearance.

Tribal groups, which have been fighting on behalf of the Dongaria Kondhs, are now finding these violations, especially Vedanta’s illegal possession of 26 hectares of forest land, as the starting point for the second part of their struggle. Says Prafulla Samantara, who petitioned the Supreme Court on behalf of the tribals: “The report calls the refinery illegal and it has to go. Our fight will continue until it is shut down.” But Saxena feels that the refinery may continue and get raw material from other mines.

The violations in the case of Vedanta have been documented and accepted by the Centre, with the ministry refusing permission for mining operations in Niyamagiri. Tribal groups ask if this report and the consequences would have any implications on several other projects where similar violations have been raised to deaf ears. Forest Rights Act violations have been alleged against Posco, as well as several other mining projects, but the state and Central governments have so far shown no indication of reviewing them, says Campaign for Survival and Dignity, an umbrella group of tribal rights organisations.

•  The Saxena Committee report (pdf) is here.

   

Update: Financial Express also reports on it. Following are some excerpts.

The PCPIR project in the state will be the fourth project in the country after West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.The central government will provide rail connectivity, highway network and airports while the state government will provide the basic infrastructure, including power and water supply, said IDCO chairman, Priyabrata Patnaik.

This is huge. Rs 2.74 lakh crore is about $60 billion. Following is from a report in Business Standard.

Region spread over 284.15 sq Km to attract investment of Rs 2.74 lakh crore.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today finally gave the green signal to the Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) project in Orissa proposed to be set up near Paradip.

"There was a meeting in New Dehi on the PCPIR project of Orissa and the CCEA has approved the proposal”, state industries secretary Saurabh Garg told Business Standard over the phone from New Delhi.

Orissa has become the fourth state after Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and West Bengal to have got the Centre’s nod for this prestigious project.

The PCPIR project in the state would be set up on 284.15 sq km (70,214 acres) of land spread over Jagatsnghpur and Kendrapara districts. The PCPIR hub is expected to attract investments to the tune of Rs 2.74 lakh crore.

Phase-I work of the project is expected to be completed by 2015 while the entire project is scheduled for commissioning by 2030. The Orissa government would invest Rs 1796 crore on infrastructure development for the project.

Of the expected overall investment figure of Rs 2.74 lakh crore, the lion’s share would come from the petroleum and petrochemicals sectors at Rs 2.3 lakh crore followed by housing and allied infrastructure at Rs 23,500 crore, external infrastructure at Rs 13,634 crore and Rs 3,500 crore each for chemicals & fertilizers and ancillary sectors.

The mega project is set to create employment for 6.48 lakh people which includes direct employment for 2.27 lakh people and indirect employment for 4.41 lakh others.

The turnover of this PCPIR hub is estimated at Rs 4.23 lakh crore with an export potential of Rs 43,000 crore. The PCPIR hub is expected to generate taxes to the tune of Rs 42,000 crore and contribute six per cent to Orissa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, which will be the anchor tenant of the region, will set up a 15 million tonne per annum grassroot refinery cum petrochemical complex five km south of Paradip at a cost of Rs 29,777 crore.

This refinery cum petrochemical complex, which needs 3300 acres of land, is scheduled for commissioning by March 2012.The land acquisition process for PCPIR is on the fast track with the state owned Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation of Orissa (Idco), the nodal agency for the project having filed requisition for 90 per cent of the total land requirement in Phase-I.The Phase-I of the PCPIR project needs 48,268 acres (195.34 sq km) in all out of which 22,232 acres (89.97 sq km) would be devoted to processing facilities while the balance 26035 acres ( 105.37 sq km) is the area set aside for non-processing facilities. Phase-I of the project is scheduled to be taken up during 2010-2020.

The entire project which is set to be completed by 2030, needs 70,214 acres (284.15 sq km) of land which includes 30,397 acres (123.01 sq km) of processing area and 39.817 acres (161.14 sq km) of non-processing area.

Out of the processing area of 123.01 sq km, 41.95 sq km is under operational units and almost 42.68 sq km (10,546.22 acres) has been acquired or is under acquisition by Idco and the balance area of 38.38 sq km needs to be acquired.

Idco has filed for land acquisition of 7,342 acres (30 sq km) for common infrastructure, utilities and accommodating downstream chemical converters and industries.

Following article titled ” `Rahul hand behind POSCO, Vedanta mess’ – Cong counters BJD charge” is from Times of India Bhubaneswar edition. Thanks to HM for bringing this to our notice and sending it to us.

Following are excerpted from Pioneer reports at here and here.

• Vedanta Aluminum would enhance its refinery, smelter and power plant capacity with a total investment of `37,440 crore. Vedanta Aluminium company would enhance its production capacity Langigarh unit to six million tonne from existing one million tonne. The company would also enhance its production capacity of Jharsuguda aluminium unit to 1.6 million tonne from existing 0.25 million tonne per annum. Similarly, the company would also increase power generation capacity of its CPP (captive power project) to 1,350 mega watt from existing 675 MW at Jharsuguda.
  
• NSL Nagapatnam’s `8,900 crore investment plans in the State. The company would set up a 1320 MW power plant in Angul district at a cost of `6,600 crore, a 5,000-tonne sugar refinery at Paradip with an investment of `800 crore and a textile and spindle mill with 3 lakh spindles at a cost of `1,500 crore at Rayagada.
• ACC Cement’s `1,850 crore three MTPA cement project along with a 50 MW CPP in Malkangiri district 
• Bhusan Steel’s `3,000-crore steel park at Meramundali.
• SPI Ports to set up a 1,320 MW (2 x 660 MW) power plant at Mahakalpada in Kendrapara district at an investment of Rs 6,600 crore.
• KU Pvt Ltd would invest Rs 7,260 crore to set up a power project with 1320 MW power generating capacity at Thakurpur in Sonepur district.
• Rohit Ferro Alloys would spend Rs 2500 crore for setting up a 67.5 MW captive power plant at its 0.6 MTPA stainless steel project at Kalinganagar in Jajpur district.
• Aditya Aluminum to enhance the capacity of its Rayagada alumina refinery to 1.5 MTPA from the present 1 MTPA, and Jharsuguda smelter from 0.26 MTPA to 0.36 MTPA with an total investment of Rs 11,000 crore,
• Jindal India is proposing to enhance the capacity of its power plant from 1,200 MW to 1,800 MW with a total investment of Rs8, 000 crore.
• Ind-Bharat is proposing to expand its power project capacity from 700 MW to 1320 MW by adding a 660 MW unit with a total cost of Rs 3300 crore.
• Kalinga Energy, which is now shifting its site from Babuchaki in Sambalpur to Sodamal in Jharsuguda district has also got green signal to enhance the capacity of its power project from 1000 MW to 1320 MW with a total cost of Rs 6500 crore.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

A ginning and bale processing unit of cotton will be established in the cooperative sector at Digapahandi in south Orissa’s Ganjam district at a cost of Rs 1.2 crore.

This was announced by the officials of the Regulated Market Committee (RMC) while the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the market yard at Digapahandi for the cotton farmers.

The market yard spread over 6.15 hectares (15.19 acres) of land, is being established under the Technology Mission for Cotton (TMC) under the Union ministry of textiles.

Around Rs 3 lakh is being spent on the development of the market yard. While the TMC had sanctioned Rs 1.50 lakh, the remaining amount would be met from the Rashtriya Krushi Vikash Yojana (RKVY) and RMC.

… The market yard has all infrastructure facilities including two godowns, each with a capacity of 500 tonnes, as well as cover shed, testing and training facilities for the farmers.

Following is an excerpt from a report in breakingnewsonline.

The proposed 1700 km Surat-Paradeep natural gas pipeline is expected to be completed by 2014 for which bid will be invited within a week. Out of the total length of the pipeline around 400 km of pipeline will be laid in Orissa.

“The union government will invite bid for the Surat-Paradeep pipeline within a week and the process will continue for minimum 6 months. The winning company would be given 36 months to execute the project and it will be executed with an estimated investment of Rs.12000 crore" L.Mansingh, Chairman of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory said.

Similarly under the ongoing 1100 km Kakinada-Howrah natural gas pipeline project around 434 km pipeline is being laid in Orissa. 

Speaking at a special interaction session organized by CII ,he said that total about Rs.76,000 – 84,000 crore investment is estimated to be required for setting up Petroleum & Natural Gas infrastructure in next five years. Of this Rs.60,000-Cr would be required for natural gas pipelines,15000crore for CGD networks and 9000crore for petroleum product pipelines.

The pipeline Projects will avail cooking gas at an affordable rate in the state. For this the Gas authority has tentatively  identified 9  growth locations i.e.Bhadrak, Khurda, Kamakhyanagar, Rourkela, Anandpur, Bhubaneswar,Jajpur, Balasore and Baripada for development of CGD network terminals. The CGD network would involve the distribution of compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquified natural gas for domestic and automobile and industrial use.

… He acknowledged that timely completion of these two projects is very crucial for the success of the proposed Petroleum, chemical and Petrochemical Investment Region (PCPIR) in the state.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

The Orissa government has allotted 110 acres of land to 55 industrial units for the proposed food processing park project being developed at Malipada in Khurda district.

“The food processing park would be developed on 162 acres of land. The state government has already allotted 110 acres to 55 units. It will invest Rs 9.9 crore on infrastructure development for this food park and out of this Rs 1.91 crore has already been deposited with the Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation of Orissa (Idco)”, said state industries minister Raghunath Mohanty.

Besides the food processing park, the state also planned to develop a mega food park at Khurda and the proposal is under the consideration of the Government of India, the minister stated.

The mega food park project, which is to be developed on around 200 acres of land, has the potential to attract investments to the tune of Rs 2000 crore. …

The government had roped in IL&FS as a consultant to help boost investments in the food processing sector. Tenders for this project were likely to be invited by August this year. …

Pointers to previous posts on this:

• June 16 2010: More details on the role of IL&FS.
• Foodpark to come up in Malipada (Khurda) and Diagapahandi (Ganjam).

This is good news. But just to make sure that the Railway wagon factory happens in Kalahandi and is not shifted to another location, the Kalahandi people should  keep copies of all newspaper articles on this. That way in case the CM changes his mind, the copies of the news paper reports on this can be presented to him. Following is a screen copy of the report in Pioneer.

Update: Following is excerpted from a report inTelegraph.

… Official sources said surveying the land for the project has already been completed. The legal and statutory requirements have been submitted to the appropriate authority for clearance.

… As per the proposal, the company would invest Rs 150 crore for land acquisition and connectivity, Rs 100 crore for energy academy, Rs 2,700 crore for power plant, Rs 1,000 crore for creating marine facilit. While Rs 400 crore would be invested for desalination plant and another Rs 500 crore would be towards township and office complex.

…Officials pointed out that oil and gas-based industries, which have shown interest in the hub are Alph Tech International Inc., Downstream Services, USA, Richemen Petroleum-Export Oriented Refinery, Dubai, SBM Offshore –FPSO Services, USA, ULO Systems LIC, Subsea Pipelines, Switerzerland and Dubai, Hyundai Offshore, South Korea.

The non-oil and gas-based industries which has evinced interest in the hub are Seacor Marine Inc, USA, Faros Investment Partners, UP, Wind Turbines and Blades, Aerostar, USA, Matrix Global LIC, USA and Virtue Group, USA.

Following is from an UNI report in newkerala.

The proposal was submitted to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik by Mr S K Chalamsethy, Director Sonepur Energy and Oil City Private Limited set up by the consortium, sources said today.

The company, official sources said, had proposed to set up an Energy Academy for the development of technical knowhow in the energy and oil sectors and create necessary infrastructure for port, power, desalination plant, fabrication and township.

While the Consortium would invest Rs 5,000 crore, other industrial houses would invest nearly Rs 10,000 crore. The projects, when completed, would provide direct employment to 20,000 people and indirect employment to one lakh.

The Energy Academy would impart training to engineer, geologist, geophysicist, drilling engineer, fabricators besides other technical persons in close association with the international oil companies.

The company, sources said, would invest Rs 100 crore on the academy which would encourage small business men in the Oil sector.

In the proposed Oil city, a port, a ship manufacturing unit, 1000 MW gas based power plant and 120 MLD Desalination Plant, besides a modern city for a population of 10,000, would be established. This apart, infrastructure for setting up of Petrochemical complex and Oil storage would be created in the city.

Official sources said the Southern Orissa, being located on the Krishna-Godabari and Mahanadi basin, has the potential for investment in the oil and gas sectors and Orissa would emerge as a major Hydrocarbon Hub in the entire South East Asia.

In a report in Orissadiary, the group is named as Greenco. I could find a website for Greenko which has a director named Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty. This financial express interview is with him. Greenko stock listing info is here.

Note that Sonepur in Ganjam is next to the Bahuda Muhana. See

• Map: Orissa ports (large map)
• Map: Orissa ports (small map)

In 2008 the Odisha government had proposed Bahuda Muhana as one of the sites in response to a GOI call for a PPP based shipyard. So the above mention plan for a shipyard fits in nicely; or it may mean good homework done by the group in making the overall proposal.

However, Odisha government needs to be careful about grandiose proposals from newcomers, as it may be a land grab plan in disguise.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

The Phase-I of the PCPIR project needs 48,268 acres (195.34 sq km) in all out of which 22,232 acres (89.97 sq km) would be devoted to processing facilities while the balance 26035 acres ( 105.37 sq km) is the area set aside for non-processing facilities. Phase-I of the project is scheduled to be taken up during 2010-2020.

The entire project which is set to be completed by 2030, needs 70,214 acres (284.15 sq km) of land which includes 30,397 acres (123.01 sq km) of processing area and 39.817 acres (161.14 sq km) of non-processing area.

Priyabrata Pattnaik, chairman and managing director of Idco said, “Idco has filed requisition for acquisition of 90 per cent of land needed for the first phase of the PCPIR project. Out of the processing area of 123.01 sq km, 41.95 sq km is under operational units and almost 42.68 sq km (10,546.22 acres) has been acquired or is under acquisition by Idco, balance area of 38.38 sq km needs to be acquired.”

He was speaking at an awareness session on ‘Regulatory Framework of Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) for Petroleum and Natural Gas Sector’, organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

Of the non-processing area of 161.14 sq km, 20.92 sq km (5169.33 acres) are village settlements which has been integrated in the non-processing area and existing township of 19.08 sq km ( 4714.66 acres) included in the non – processing area.

Idco has also filed for land acquisition of 7,342 acres (30 sq km) for common infrastructure, utilities and accommodating downstream chemical converters and industries.

Meanwhile, as a part of developing rail connectivity within the PCPIR hub, it has been decided to set up rail freight stations (RFS) along with additional rail sidings at a total cost of Rs 80 crore in Phase-I and Rs 120 crore in Phase-II.

In Phase I, the RFS will be along Cuttack-Paradeep line which further connects to Paradeep port and Chennai-Howrah trunk whereas in Phase II, the RFS will be along Paradeep-Haridaspur line joining Chennai-Howrah trunk. The PCPIR project at Paradip is awaiting the in-principle approval of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA). After Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and West Bengal, Orissa would be the fourth state to receive the approval for this prestigious project.

Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) would be the anchor tenant of the project and it would set up a 15 million tonne per annum grassroot refinery cum petrochemical complex five km south of Paradip at a cost of Rs 29,777 crore. The refinery project is expected to be commissioned by March 2012 and stabilized by November 2012.

For the last couple of years the IT industry growth in Bhubaneswar had slowed down. With the economic mood of the country back in the positive direction projects put in the backburner are now getting to the forefront. Following is an excerpt from a report in Telegraph.

… The proposed IT-SEZ will come up near the Infocity-II at Godakashipur, 15 km from the city. The project that included an integrated township would require 613 acres of land, IT minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi said.

“While the proposed IT-SEZ would be set up in an area of 320 acres of land, an integrated township would be developed in the remaining 180 acres of the total area. The rest would be kept in store to meet the future needs of the department," Majhi said.

As per the proposed plan, schools, colleges, hospitals, hotels and amusement parks would be developed. …

… the proposed SEZ would provide jobs to more than one lakh IT professionals. Another four lakh people would gain suitable employment opportunities in the project, which was scheduled to start its operation during 2011-2012 financial year.

“The Orissa Computer Application Centre (OCAC) will set up a seven-storied incubation tower. All small and medium scale entrepreneurs, engaged in the IT business, would be provided space at the centre at an affordable price. The centre would come near Acharya Bihar,’’ he said.

Construction of the incubation centre has already started.

So far, two IT parks are operational in the city. The government has already signed MoUs with DLF and Raheja groups to set up two more parks in the city. The fifth park will be set up by the government’s Industrial Development Corporation (IDCO).

Raheja group is planning to set up the IT park with an investment of Rs 1,000 crore in an area of 100 acres. The group has opted for a site near the Infocity of Bhubaneswar.

Real estate giant DLF is setting up another park with an investment of Rs 1,000 crore. The foundation stone has already been laid for the DLF Infopark, which would come up in phases on 25 acres of land and is expected to generate about 40,000 direct and indirect employment.

The minister claimed that the IT firms operating from the state had exported software worth Rs 1,198 crore during 2009-10 as against Rs 1,171 crore in 2008-2009.

Officials from the IT department said it was one of the few cities in the country that boasts of the presence of the big four of Indian software exports. While Infosys and Satyam have been in the city for quite some time, TCS has already recruited about 500 people after starting its operation in 2007.

Wipro, too, has started building its campus.

Nearly 12,000 people are directly engaged in the various IT industries.

… Moreover, along with the SEZ and IT parks, the state government is also planning to set up an Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR) in the capital city. It would come up near Jatni, about 25 km from here. If things go right, it can attract an investment of Rs 15,000 crore, official sources said.

This is all good. The government should start steering away some of the IT firms to Berhampur, Rourkela, Balasore, and Sambalpur.

There are tons of news items alleging how mining in the Niyamgiri hills will destroy the way of living of the Dongria Kondh people. Reputed organizations such as Action Aid and Survival International have strongly campaigned against the mining there and have castigated the state government of Odisha and Vedanta Resources for intending to mine Bauxite in the Niyamgiri hills. The following report from Telegraph gives a different viewpoint that one also needs to read and think about.

From the remote Dongria Kondh village in Sakata to the capital’s Aryan School of Management Information and Technology, Jitu Jakesia has come a long way.

The first from the Dongria Kondh tribe to clear the Class X board examination, the firebrand tribal leader from Muniguda block in Jakesia, is now concentrating on his studies.

He believes that without education, the Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs) cannot succeed in its mission.

Representing his community before the joint committee of the ministry of environment and forests and ministry of tribal affairs, Jakesia put forward the problems faced by the Dongria community and what should be done to remedy them as per the provisions of the Forest Rights Act.

…“After passing the matriculation examination, I started began attending high school in Muniguda College. I pursued studies in the Arts stream. I completed my graduation from the same college. During my three years in college, I worked as an activist, fighting against industrialisation. I thought that this would make a difference, as I was inspired by NGOs and political parties,” he said.

Jakesia was, however, disillusioned by political parties and voluntary organisations.

“At the end of the day, resources really matter. During my student days, I received no help from voluntary organisation or political party. The members of my family were alcoholics. All these problems forced me to focus on my career as a student and not an activist. I ended up continuing my studies,” he said.

…Regarding industrialisation and its effects on Niyamgiri, Jakesia said: “I realised that for bauxite excavation, only the surface level of the rock is used.

This is unlike iron ore and coal mining, where one has to go below the surface. Thus, the process is fairly smooth. You will be surprised to know that puja offered to Niyam Raja was never performed there. Now, after the spread of awareness, the puja is performed on top of the hill.”

He said that there was a time when no one was aware of Niyamgiri.

“If you search on the internet now, you will find thousands of results. The industrial development has given Kalahandi many things. It’s quite visible in the economy and development. So, I do not think development is unnecessary’’ he told The Telegraph.

During submission of his grievances regarding the Forest Rights Act, Jakesia had said: “The revenue officials have made many blunders by marketing forest land as hill land.”

There are many instances where there is no scope for individuals or communities to derive benefits from the Act, as the officials don’t understand the problem.

With so many loopholes, requisite amendments should be made, Jakesia had told the joint committee.

See also the article at http://kalahandia.blogspot.com/2010/07/mining-project-will-bring-development.html and the following youtube video for more on this young man’s views.

The Telegraph article spells the name of the young man incorrectly. His correct name is Jitu Jakasika. If one googles his name one will read many old article where Jitu is fighting against mining. See for example this article at http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/3294 in the pages of Survival International.

Following is an excerpt from a report in the Economic Times.

The Handloom Export Promotion Council (HEPC) …

The council decided to set up three more design centres at Varanasi and Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh and Bhubaneswar in Orissa. These centres would help handloom weavers improve product quality and design and thereby, fetch a better price.

The HEPC web site is http://www.hepcindia.com/. From that site I could not find information on existing design centers. However I came across the site of National Center for Textile design in Delhi. My guess is that similar centers will be established in the three locations mentioned above. The About Us page of the this center says the following:

The National Centre for Textile Design (NCTD) has been setup in January 2001, by the Ministry of Textiles, Govt. of India,  with the objective of making innovative, ethnic and contemporary design available to the textile sector.

The main aim of the centre is to link people working in the centre with each other and to give the weavers & workers better exposure to the markets. This will enable them to have better livelihood and more sustainable development.

The centre has both online and offline activities.

The online sector will exhibit these designs nationally and globally to facilitate the textile sector in getting designs in time as per seasonal forecast requirements and to enable regions as well as to develop on each others’ concepts.

We would like people, like power loom workers etc. also to benefit from the centre. This is done in several ways as for instance exhibiting their designs on NCTD website. This will give them exposure to exporters, international buyers, design houses and will help to obtain a better price for their designs through design trends and forecasts on the website and they can respond to the demands of the market in a better way.

NCTD plan to link up Weavers’ Sevice Centres, Powe4rloom Service Centres and all other textile related sites to our main website through internet connectivity so that these centre can take quick and necessary advantages of the centre for the benefit of their members.

Trends and Forecasts
Both domestic and international forecasts are collated and provided in one place to cater to many middle level and smaller apparel and furnishings manufacturers, exporters and domestic textile traders and producers so that they can respond adequately and in a timely fashion to market requirements.

Virtual Museum of Heritage Textiles
This is a cyber museum of textiles collated down the ages. The material is sourced from other resources and kept as a library for future references. 

Design Pool
This is one of the most important components of the NCTD. This is basically a cyber collection of new individual designs, collected from different sources and posted at one location.

Handicraft Fabrics from India
This section is essentially a directory of handcrafted textiles from India which contains a visual factual information and technical specifications of the items produced.

The proposed design center will nicely compliment the following textile and handloom related institutes in Odisha.

• IIHT (Indian Institute of Handloom Technology), Baragarh
• NIFT (National Institute of Fashion Technology), Bhubaneswar
• ATDC (Apparel Training and Design Centers) centers in Odisha:
  • An Eastern zone hub at Bhubaneswar
  • An Eastern zone center at Rourkela
  • Eastern zone satellite centers at Berhampur, Baripada and Cuttack

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

Kolkata-based Icore Group with interests in steel making, cement, gems and jewellery apparel and paints, would invest Rs 5,000 crore in Orissa setting up a 1.8 million tonne per annum (mtpa) steel plant and a cement crushing unit with a capacity of 5,000 tonnes per day.

The integrated steel cum cement complex would come up on 80 acres of land at Somanthpur in Balasore district. …

… Initially, Icore will start its steel plant operations with a capacity of 0.36 mtpa at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore and later scale up to 1.8 mtpa. While the cement crushing unit is set to commence operations from December 2010, the steel plant is expected to be operational by March next year.

In contrast Tata Steel is needing 3400 acres to set up a 6 MTPA steel plant in Kalinganagar. Perhaps I am missing something or something is amiss somewhere.

The face book page is at http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/Tatasteelparivar. Following are some updates from that page.

• July 10, 1:19 AM: Construction at Site – The construction work at the main plant site will start shortly after the rehabilitation and resettlement process is completed. But other construction work to support the main plant like Intake Well, IM Section, Fabrication Yard, Hospital and most importantly the rehabilitation colonies and camps have already started.
• July 10, 1:22 AM
• July 12, 12:55 AM: Plant Equipments – Orders worth Rs 6,373 crore for the equipment and civil structures have already been placed. While the equipments like Blast Furnace and Sinter Plant for the steel plant have already been received and stored in the Tata Growth Shop and Agrico at Jamshedpur and Bamnipal, the orders for Steel Melting Shop and Coke Oven have been placed.
• July 12, 12:58 AM: Civil Structural Work – Orders of more than 1,000 crore for civil structural work has been placed.
• 12:59 AM: Intake Well – The intake well is located at Marthapur on the bank of river Brahmani, situated about 18 kms from the main plant site. This intake well will supply water to the plant.
• 1:00 AM: Fabrication Yard – The steel structures required for construction of different shops like steel melting shop, blast furnace etc are being fabricated at the Fabrication Yad at Jodabar. About 2200 MT of steel have already been fabricated at this unit. The members of Tata Steel Paribar after being trained are also working here.
• 11:42 PM: I M Section – The Company is constructing two covered sheds near Duburi to store the plant and machineries required for the construction of steel plant.
• 11:44 PM: Hospital – To extend better healthcare facilities to the people in and around Kalinga Nagar, Tata Steel is setting-up a hospital in Gobarghati rehabilitation colony. The hospital building is under construction on a land of 4 acres. When completed this hospital would serve 10,000 families with round-the-clock service, pathology lab and outdoor complex.
• 11:44 PM: Construction at the rehabilitation and resettlement Colonies – Tata Steel has developed three rehabilitation and resettlement colonies as well as five transit camps at Kalinga Nagar to ensure smooth living of the relocated families.
• 11:45 PM: Power to the Main Plant Site:- The Steel Plant at Orissa is a complex combination of Steel Processing technologies designed at much larger scale to improve efficiency and therefore have large demand on stability & control on operating areas including the Power generation & Distribution system.
• 11:45 PM: The plant has been designed with three separate sources to pull in Power and increase the tolerance of the system to handle large Power requirement of Steel Plant and with only GRID source during Construction
• 11:45 PM: The captive Power plant inside the Kalinganagar plant area fuelled by the By-product gases generated by the steel making process (CPP by Tata Power)
• 11:46 PM: Orissa Grid from 220 kV New Duburi GSSII Sub Station.
• 11:46 PM: Captive Coal based Power plant at Naraj Marthapur (CPP by Tata Power)
• July 13, 5:00 AM: Tata Steel Rural Development Society (TSRDS)a non-profit organisation has been trying to bring the displaced tribal communities of Jajpur District in Orissa to the mainstream through their socio-economic development. TSRDS has helped the tribal men and women from the displaced families in health care, safe drinking water, …sanitation, women empowerment, livelihood etc.
• July 14, 2:04 AM: Logistics – The life line of a steel plant is its logistics. It is a well known fact that every single ton of steel production needs transportation of minimum 4 ton of raw material and finished goods. So right from location selection to layout design, logistics plays a vital role in planning a new mega steel plant like the Kalinganagar Steel plant in Jajpur’ Orissa.
• 2:05 AM: Iron ore, coal (Domestic as well as imported) and imported limestone are the prime inputs for the steel plant. The Iron ore mines and main port of relevance i.e. Dhamra Port, is barely 100 KM from the plant site. For Orissa Steel Project all these sources are connected via rail linkages. Some through existing Indian R…ail network and some portion is planned under captive Logistic projects.
• 2:05 AM:  RITES had been appointed as the consultant to prepare the detail rail plan which consists of (a) The Traffic projection & Capacity calculation for the existing IR network (b) Rail alignment and Take off plan for Tata Steel’s Sidings. (c) Cost estimate of the total Project.
• 2:06 AM:  Apart from the plant internal rail yards Orissa Project, will require a 25 KM (Route Length) captive rail connection in Mines and a 20 KM (Route length) rail connection for plant connectivity to the nearest serving rail stations (Baghuapal & Jakhapura).
• 2:06 AM: These have been designed considering the highest operating efficiency level and zero process interruption probability. Railway Board and Zonal railway have finally accepted our comprehensive rail logistic proposal.
• 2:57 AM: At Integrated Industrial Complex, Kalinga Nagar, Duburi, in the district of Jajpur, in Odisha, a 6 million tonnes integrated steel plant of Tata Steel is proposed to be setup. Setting up the steel plant will necessitate displacement of about 679 families of three villages, namely, Gobaraghati, Chandia and Gadapur. Tata Ste…el has already started providing state of the art training for the members of the displaced families and would provide employment to one member of each extended family.Tata Steel is building model rehabilitation colonies for the resettlement of the displaced population so as to provide modern basic amenities and improved living conditions.Tata Steel believes that the primary purpose of the business is to improve the quality of life of people. Each of the displaced families will be a part of the ‘Tata Steel Parivar’ which is a committed and structured approach to ensure a better quality of life for the displaced families through focused interventions.
• July 15:  Apart from the plant internal rail yards Orissa Project, will require a 25 KM (Route Length) captive rail connection in Mines and a 20 KM (Route length) rail connection for plant connectivity to the nearest serving rail stations (Baghuapal & Jakhapura).
• These have been designed considering the highest operating efficiency level and zero process interruption probability. Railway Board and Zonal railway have finally accepted our comprehensive rail logistic proposal.
• Although the bulk of the Material movement for an operating steel plant is done via rail transport for all the external movement and through conveyor system for in-plant movements.
• But road transport also plays a vital role in the operating logistics of a steel plant, due to the fact that, there is no economical means of transporting a wide variety of materials required for or generated from the operation of process plants, which needs transportation in small quantity for a short distance.
• In addition, a significant portion of the finished goods movement is required to be transported by road vehicles only.
• But Unlike Jamshedpur, fortunately Kalinganagar industrial area is well-connected by road. Our Plant site is flanked by Daitari- Paradip express way which got converted to NH-200 recently and on the eastern side, the state highway connects the Sukinda Mines, to our plant site.
• A road transport planning for a steel plant includes building roadways and plant roads , parking stations, maintenance facilities, service roads, a transport circulation plan and a scientific traffic projection. All these have been done with the help of a professional organization.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

… "After completing the official procedures, we will sign an MoU for the CTL project involving an investment of Rs 42,000 crore," JSPL Executive Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Naveen Jindal told reporters after a meeting with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik here this evening.

…Stating that he discussed with the chief minister the group’s four projects comprising the Rs 52,000-crore steel plant, a thermal power plant involving Rs 6,600 crore, the Rs 42,000-crore CTL plant and an industrial complex envisaging an investment of Rs 500 crore, Jindal said a total of Rs 1,01,100 crore would be invested in Orissa over the next decade.

"We also discussed (with the chief minister) on our proposal of enhancing steel capacity from 6 million tonne per annum (mtpa) to 12.5 mtpa," he said, adding the department of steel and mines is likely to list this project for consideration of the task-force by the end of July.

Jindal said, on completion, "about 80,000 barrel of oil per day will be manufactured from the proposed CTL plant." The project is likely to be listed in next task-force meeting in July itself, he added.

… Earlier, the Tata Group, in collaboration with Sasol of South Africa, had evinced interest in setting up a similar coal-to-liquid plant in the state.

… Jindal indicated to set up the unit in Angul district where its steel plant is being built.

JSPL, which had already been alloted a coal block in the state, would complete its proposed CTL petroleum project in eight years, a company executive said, adding about 32,000 would get employment in the project.

… While many mega industries face difficulties in implementing their MoUs, the JSPL chief said his company got support of the local people in Angul district.

Besides these four mega projects, JSPL is also working on setting up an engineering college and a power training institute, Jindal said adding the company is committed to recruit local youths in its plants.

Following is an excerpt from a report in LA Times about the Nano plant in Gujarat and how some of the landlosers have managed their finances.

But Pathan, and scores like him who live in the shadow of a new factory built by Tata Motors to make its ultra-cheap Nano car, are the beneficiaries of the race to transform India from a nation of small farmers to an industrialized power.

… Against this backdrop of strife, Pathan’s story is the ideal of what could be achieved if the more than 50 percent of Indians who live off the land get a real stake in the new economy. It’s a principle that advocates of market capitalism and human rights activists can agree on, but that often fails to materialize across rural India, where stories of powerful business interests and corrupt officials conspiring to throw poor farmers off their land are all too common.

Around the Tata plant in Sanand, in the western state of Gujarat, people have begun to talk of the "Nano effect."

Go down a narrow lane that runs to dirt not 15 minutes from the factory and amid the gamboling goats of Chharodi village, you will find 25 new homes.

Property prices have risen sharply — from 50 to 400 percent — and men are making fortunes brokering land deals.

The village head says three dozen of the 3,000 people in Chharodi have gotten work from contractors. The Nano factory hasn’t given them jobs directly, but it has offered a toehold in the industrial economy. They remain farmers, but a growing part of their income comes from informal business ventures or work for contractors.

Pathan and his three brothers sold the government one-third of their family farm to make way for the Nano plant. They were paid 20 million rupees ($432,900) — a fortune even in Gujarat, one of India’s richest states.

Ask the Pathan brothers what they did with this money, and they grin like schoolboys.

They bought 2.7 hectares (6.6 acres) of land — more than doubling their initial landholding — three kilometers (two miles) away, where they are preparing to plant their first crop.

They bought seven tractors and three Bolero jeeps, which they use for contracting work at the Nano site, raking in 455,000 rupees ($9,848) a month.

They are rebuilding their family home. Gone is the mud and thatch. Today their angular concrete two-story is the biggest on the block.

"You’ve done a damn good job out here," Pathan says of Ratan Tata, who heads the Tata group’s sprawling industrial empire.

The underlined part above is an important part. If the land losers are paid multiple times the "current" value of their land, in most places they can easily buy more than that amount of land within a few kms.

Following is an excerpt from a Nageswar Patnaik article in Economic Times. 

There is something to cheer about for the families displaced by the Tata Steel Project at Kalinganagar. These families have achieved zero dropout rate at elementary school level, sustainable environment, poverty eradication, increase in literacy rate, gender equality, empowerment of women.

The achievers of these challenging Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are not highly educated and extraordinary urbanite people, but ordinary members of self-help groups residing in rehabilitation colonies at Kalinga Nagar in Orissa’s Jajpur district.

Helped by country’s major steel producer, Tata Steel, the self-help groups called Tata Steel Parivars (TSPs) have successfully ensured that all children living in the colony went to the school and got education. Tata Steel is setting up of a 6-million ton per annum integrated steel plant at Kalinganagar Industrial Complex at Kalinga Nagar in Jajpur district.

“The noteworthy achievement of Tata Steel Parivars [TSP] at Kalinganagar is that those families have achieved the target of 100% elementary education with zero school drop out rate,” says Sukanta Rout, an educationist who played a crucial role in motivating the children, mostly tribals, to go to the school.

As many as 159 tribal children have been enrolled in the residential schools in Jajpur district. Similarly, 50 children have got the opportunity of studying in one of the premier schools of the state – Kalinga Institute of Social Science (KISS), here. As many as 213 children are studying in schools as day scholars.

Simultaneously, there is significant jump in the literacy levels of the TSPs from 45% in 2005 to 65% in 2010.

Most significantly, there has been an incredible and drastic change in the will power of women of these relocated families. The empowered women community are now self-employed and going overboard for what they are doing. They have engaged themselves in poultry farming, gardening, stone carving, saura painting and in setting up of small industries like phenyl and pickles.

“A few years before, we were quite poor, – we did not have money to even buy food, let alone send our children to school. Now with own our income, we are not only meeting our day-today expenses but also support our school and college-going children,” says Jamiti Mahanta, head of an SHG group.

If the industries that are coming up in Odisha, such as POSCO and Vedanta, can be made to do the above and perhaps more then it will be a win-win situation for all. POSCO’s current package seems to be a step in the right direction. Following is an excerpt from a Business Standard article on that.

Posco, the biggest foreign direct investment (FDI) in India at $12 billion (Rs 54,000 crore), has offered the largest ever compensation package in the country for the displaced and landless farmers.

The Rs 400 crore compensation — part of its estimated project cost — announced by Posco India for Orissa, is expected to benchmark industry relief in the country. The package will benefit over 2000 encroachers and landless labourers at the Posco site.

While Rs 100 crore will be provided for the acquisition of government and private land, Rs 100 crore will be given towards building a rehabilitation colony and Rs 200 crore as compensation to encroachers of government land.

The move – including encroachers of government land and landless labourers earning their livelihood from the area – was beyond the prescription of the state or national rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) policies.

While fixing the price of private land at Rs 17 lakh per acre, the Rehabilitation and Periphery Development Advisory Committee (RPDAC) for the Posco project announced a compensation of Rs 11.5 lakh an acre for the loss of betel vines, most of which are on government land. There are about 1,877 betel vines in the site covering 300 acres.

Landless labourers working in the betel vines will get 20 per cent of the total compensation for the loss, which is over and above the amount paid to the owners of the areas where betel is grown.

Similarly, RPDAC has prescribed assistance of Rs 2 lakh per acre for owners of the prawn gheris — most of which are operating on government land — and Rs 1 lakh an acre for farmers using government land for agriculture.

In a never-before step, the South Korean steel giant’s package will pay an unemployment allowance of Rs 2,250 a month to the landless labourers, who will lose their livelihood following the acquisition, till they are provided job by the company. Capping it all, RPDAC has decided to provide alternative housing to families who had encroached and built their houses on government land.

In comparison, the compensation package for sharecroppers or landless labourers in Bengal’s Singur was 25 per cent of what the land owner received — for a single-crop Rs 2 lakh and Rs 3 lakh for double-crop farmland. In Nayachar, the West Bengal government had promised to rehabilitate 100-150 fishermen families who had encroached upon government land — the site for a chemical hub.

The rate is also more than what neighbouring Chhattisgarh is offering. The government there recently hiked the compensation to Rs 10 lakh for an acre for two-crop farmland, Rs 8 lakh an acre for single-crop un-irrigated land and Rs 6 lakh for barren land.

The captive mines given to these companies and the royalty rate is a different issue. I believe that currently the royalty given to the state is too little.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

Topping the lists of the prospective investors is Gokul Agrawal of CTC Education Pvt Ltd who intends to invest Rs 6000 crore over five years in developing a 1000-acre knowledge city.

In the higher education sector, Silicon University of the Silicon Valley Group has proposed to set up its campus in the state at a cost of Rs 300 crore. Investments would also be pouring in for the state’s hospitality sector with the US-based Best Western Hotel lining up a Rs 100-crore investment plan for setting up a chain of properties at Bhubaneswar, Paradip, Chilka and Jharsuguda.

Land could become an issue with respect to the proposed knowledge city. A city/town/community that may want such a knowledge city which, I am told, would include multiple universities could offer help in the land part. They should of course first investigate if the group really has that much money and if their plan is for real.

Thanks to Sunil Sabat for the photograph.

Following is an excerpt from a report in expresscomputerline.

S.P. Singh, Sr. Director, DIT, Government of India, underscored the importance of support infrastructure in e-governance implementations. The government of India has taken the initiative of providing this infrastructure and its three pillars are State WAN (SWAN), State Data Centers (SDC) and Citizen Service Centers (CSC).

…The mandate of the SDC scheme is that data centers are to be set up in all 35 states and union territories. It involves an outlay of 1,623 crores over five years and this takes care of the CAPEX for setting up data centers as well as the OPEX for five years.

The idea (SDC) is to concentrate and migrate IT infrastructure in state governments to a centralized environment that provides 24×7 services.

With regard to BC and DR, Singh said the four data centers of the NIC will provide disaster recovery to individual states. A 64,000 sq. ft. data center will come up in Delhi to begin with. Pune, Hyderabad and Bhubaneswar will follow suit eventually.

BC refers to Business Continuity and DR refers to Disaster Recovery.

Following is an excerpt from a report in Business Standard.

After the successful operationalization of its smelter plant at Jharsuguda, Vedanta Aluminium Limited (VAL) has now decided to set up a state-of-the-art, multi-speciality hospital at the same location at an investment of Rs 50 crore.

… The hospital will be spread over nine thousand sq metres.

Construction work on the hospital has kicked off in June 2010 and it is scheduled to be fully operational by January 2011. Mumbai-based Hosmac India Limited, a noted company in the field of hospital planning and management consultancy, has been roped in for the design and lay-out of VAL’s hospital.

The overall layout of the hospital is designed keeping in view the comfort and convenience of the patients and their attendants. Despite being a high-class hospital in terms of its structure and services, it will serve the people belonging to different socio-economic groups and especially and will be dedicated to timely and affordable medical assistance to the poor.

To ensure a highly professional approach in the running of the hospital, VAL is negotiating with healthcare majors like Apollo Group of Hospitals and Fortis. Both these hospitals are expected to operate the hospital jointly. …