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Tussle over cashew orchards lease in Ganjam district

Staff Reporter

Warring factions demand arrest of rival groups

BERHAMPUR: Tussle over the lease of cashew orchards in Ganjam district has been turning volatile with two warring groups demanding arrest of rival group leaders.

On Saturday a group of villagers from Garampeta village met State Energy Minister Suryanarayan Patro in the city and handed him a memorandum demanding arrest of Natabar Sahu of Indrakshi village. They also demanded that the Government cashew orchards near their village should be leased out to them for plucking nuts at low rates rather than leasing them out to others. Led by the S. Raja Rao of Garampeta village and the BJD zilla parishad chairman, Dharanidhar Behera they alleged that the liquor mafia of Indrakshi was taking the cashew orchards near their village on lease paying hefty sums to hide their illicit liquor manufacturing.Meanwhile, the villagers of Indrakshi also filed an FIR at the Golanthara police station alleging that a group of miscreants and a police team from Golanthara police station had terrorised the village especially the house of Natabar on June 5 night. Name of Rao was finds place in the FIR among the persons involved in this act.

Revenue loss

Owing to the tussle between these two groups, four out of five major cashew jungles near the coast under Berhampur soil conservation division could not be leased out in view of law and order problem. Only one cashew orchard near Lodigaon village could be leased out. The Government has suffered a loss of Rs 80 lakhs because of it.

It is alleged that some miscreants from Garampeta village had tried to burn down the cashew orchard near Lodigaon in March this year and manhandled the leaders of 23 villages who get together every year to take the cashew jungles on lease for nut picking. This group is pressing for the arrest of three persons, including Rao.

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