RAJ KUMAR
Ranchi, March 7: A clash between villagers and police officials took place outside the NTPC office at Tandwa in Chatra district. As many as 20, including villagers and policemen, sustained injuries in the city.
The incident took place around 2pm after a section of villagers, who had stopped the entry of any person closing the gate of NTPC demanding compensation against the land acquired for the NTPC project, also stopped the sub-divisional officer of the district, Sudhir Das, and manhandled him.
Police resorted to lathi-charge and used tear gas to disperse the villagers. Agitated villagers then set a couple of vehicles working for the basin plant of NTPC about 500m away from NTPC gate number 1 on fire and blocked Tandwa-Ranchi Main Road.
Superintendent of police of the district Rakesh Ranjan could not be contacted for a comment on the issue. Officials of the NTPC also remained incommunicado.
A locality resident said that as many as 400 local people were involved in the incident.
“Owners of 2300 acre land, who had once got compensation, had come together demanding an additional Rs 5 lakh per acre. As NTPC being a government agency was not in a position to pay without direction from the government, the villagers had stopped work causing delay in the project and finally this situation came,” the resident said.
“After the incident work on the plant, which will have three units each of 660MW, is likely to get badly affected. The deadline set for completion of one unit for production is mid-March. I do not think the company will be in a position to achieve the same,” the resident said.
