In 2007, the West Bengal government, led by the Left Front, started acquiring land to develop three industrial parks in Raghunathpur in Purulia district, namely Raghunathpur Industrial Park, Raghunathpur Industrial Park 1 and Raghunathpur Industrial Park 2.
For the first Raghunathpur Industrial Park, 1,924 acres of land under the administration of the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) was acquired. The WBIDC also acquired 793.75 acres for Industrial Park 1 and 733.99 acres for Industrial Park 2, resulting in a total acquisition of 3,451.71 acres of land. Agreements with companies such as Jai Balaji Group, Reliance Cement, Emami Cement, Adhunik Corporation and Shyam Steel Industries were signed, and the companies were allotted lands for their industrial units, which dealt with steel, power and cement.
However, even after more than a decade of the land acquisition, the project has not started. The families who gave their land started demanding their land back in the wake of the Singur case judgement, in which the Supreme Court ordered the land to be returned to the original landholders for the reason that it was illegally acquired. In 2016, farmers started to protest demanding the return of their land as the project was yet to take off. Protests were organised under the banner of Nutandi Anchal Krishi Committee, a local organisation that has been fighting for farmer rights since the conflict began.
In 2018, the committee submitted a memorandum to the Raghunathpur sub-divisional administration seeking the return of their land as there have been no factories built. The committee members also marched to the district magistrate's office. Several companies who were supposed to build on the land backed off. Emami Cement cancelled the project and returned the land to the state. Jai Balaji Group, similarly, suspended the project due to the downturn in the steel market. Also, coal blocks that were supposed to supply to steel industries were cancelled due to allegations of corruption. Shyam Steel and Adhunik Group also did not build any project.
Reportedly, at the time of land acquisition in Raghunathpur, there was another demand to increase the compensation for the land acquired, but that movement took a turn due to growing frustration among villagers over the lack of industry on the land. The villagers are currently demanding the return of land.
On 8 June 2019, LCW spoke to a volunteer from the Nutandi Anchal Krishi Committee, who said that the movement is ongoing even though the momentum has lost steam. But, he said, they would not give up.
According to a news report of December 2020, the Raghunathpur Industrial Park's undeveloped land lies with the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation's land bank.
In 2021, the state government formally launched the inception of a steel hub by the name of Jangal Sundari Karmanagari over 2483 acres in Raghunathpur. Six companies were reportedly under process to invest about Rs 70,000 crore and yield over one lakh jobs. Out of this, Rashmi Steel was allotted 800 acres, Shyam Steel 600 acres, Capital Steel 300 acres, and so on. A power station and a road network are also expected to come up to service the industrial complex.
Chief secretary HK Dwivedi stated in 2024 that the state will be taking up development of three industrial corridors, one among them being Raghunathpur-Dankuni-Haldia-Tajpur. The report also stated the availability of smaller areas of 'ready land' of 5-50 acres spread across areas, including Raghunathpur.
In February 2024, authorities of Shyam Steel pledged to create 8,000-odd direct employment opportunities once the plant starts working at full capacity. Initially, the plant aims to employ 2500 people including 359 from families that had previously lost land here.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Return of acquired land
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Private
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Project stalled
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Residential area
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
No
Source/Reference
<https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/west-bengal-has-6000-acres-of-land-in-land-bank-for-industry/2145772/>
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
16000
Type of investment:
Cost of Project
Year of Estimation
2007
Has the Conflict Ended?
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Land Acquisition Laws
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Incorrect estimation of compensation
Non-implementation/violation of LARR Act
Controversial land acquisition by the government
Legal Status:
Out of Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Left goverment, WBIDC
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
No
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Jai Balaji Industries Limited, Adhunik Corporation Limited, Dishergarh Power Supply Company Limited, Damodar Valley Corporation
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
No
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
Nutandi Anchal Krishi Committee, Affected residents
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Mitali has previously worked as a freelance journalist for Doordarshan. She has directed and produced documentaries themed on sexual violence against women and the peasant movement at Bhangar in West Bengal. She has also co-directed SD, an investigative biography on slain Naxalite leader Saroj Datta. She is currently in the editorial board of Protibidhan, a Bengali magazine dedicated to women’s movements.
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