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Meet opposes exploitation of natural resources

- Photo: Ashoke Chakrabarty

On the warpath: Activists of the National Students' Union of India taking out a procession in protest against the BJD's mining policy, in Bhubaneswar on Saturday.

BHUBANESWAR: A large number of social activists, leaders of various people's movements and politicians on Saturday came together to express their concern over the “mindless exploitation” of natural resources of the State at the instance of the Naveen Patnaik Government.

Addressing a day-long convention against the alleged loot of land, water, forest and mineral wealth here, they held Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik squarely responsible for the large scale illegal mining and acquisition of forest and agricultural land by private companies in the name of development. Mr. Patnaik, who was thriving by claiming to be a champion of the poor and downtrodden, was actually furthering the interests of the multinational companies, the speakers alleged. More than 600 social activists and other people from different parts of the State attended the convention that was organised by the Odisha Jana Sammilani, a people's organisation headed by veteran journalist Rabi Das. Among others who addressed the convention include former High Court Judge Chaudhury Pratap Mishra, former Union Minister Braja Kishore Tripathy, former Minister Panchanan Kanungo, former Advocate General Jayanta Das, and prominent social activists Prafulla Samantara and Lingaraj.

The meeting decided that the prominent activists who attended the convention would jointly tour different regions of the State to build public opinion against the handing over of the natural resources to the hands of private companies, which they termed anti-people and against the interests of the State and the future generation.

At the end of the convention, a majority of those who took part in the convention took out a torchlight procession in the city in the evening to register their protest against the exploitation of the State's natural resources for the benefit of big companies and at the cost of the livelihood sources of the people and environment.

Social activists Bijay Parida and Debi Prasad Prusty took active part in organising the torchlight procession.

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