Police evict farmers from land for nuclear plant

Sushil Manav

Tribune News Service

Fatehabad, May 27

A large police force today evicted farmers living on a piece of land acquired by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) for setting up of their power project at Gorakhpur.

The authorities razed their houses, destroyed their crops, carted away their belongings as well as cattle.

Led by SDM Sant Lal Pachar, the cops used JCB machines to raze the buildings. Sudesh and Sonia besides Satbir and Sadhu Ram, who offered resistance, were taken into custody under Section 107/ 151 of the CrPC. However, they were later let off on bail.

The NPCIL had acquired over 1,503 acres of land in Gorakhpur, Kajal Heri and Badopal for the setting up of nuclear power plant in 2012. While the corporation had already taken possession of the major part of land farmers owning 28 acres had refused to the compensation and were also not vacating the land.

Attempts by the NPCIL to dispossess these farmers of their land had been resisted by the farmers in the past.

Today, a strong police force caught them unaware and launched a sudden offensive against them in the early morning. After removing the farmers’ families from the house, the authorities pulled down their houses. Fatehabad Deputy Commissioner NK Solanki said that the farmers had no locus standi to remain there as the land had been acquired.