Odisha: Mafia controls bonded labour market worth Rs 500 crore

A strong mafia controls bonded slavery in Odisha and almost 3 lakh people are trafficked out of the state every year. The mafia controls the illegal labour market worth over Rs 500 crore with an iron grip.

For people like Nilambar Majhi and Dialu Nial there is no option other than bonded labour. Both belong to families of landless labourers in Kalahandi, and are ideal victims for the middlemen for labour contractors.
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One such middleman told CNN-IBN how families are loaned Rs 10-15,000 for medical treatment or a marriage. Unable to repay, they fall into the bonded labour trap and then entire families are forced to work year after year in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Unable to repay loans taken for marriage or treatment, they fall into the bonded labour trap and are forced to work year after year.

"If the labourers take money and do not go to work then it's our job to threaten them and even beat them up to go to Andhra and Karnataka. We are paid Rs 1,000 per head of labourer sent as commission from the contractor," said an agent who refused to be identified.

Bonded labourers are treated virtually as slaves. They are poorly fed, over-worked and unpaid. Many laborers revealed how anyone trying to escape or protest faced brutal violence.

"My daughter-in-law was pregnant and still she was forced to work. When I protested boiling water was thrown on me by the brick kiln owner," said bonded labourer Sabitri Kumbhar.

There are about 1,500 middlemen active in Bolangir district of Odisha alone, feeding an illegal labour market worth over Rs 500. For a status check, CNN-IBN went to Kantabangi railway station in Bolangir, the hub of such labour trafficking. Hundreds of bonded labourers were seen sitting with their children in the cold, right next to the railway police station with the middlemen and contractor's musclemen guarding them. The police do nothing and sources say that local politicians across parties protect the mafia.

"The dalals (middlemen) and contractors are closely related to the mainstream political parties here and they fully protect them," says Ajit Panda, a social activist on bonded labourers in Nuapada.

Rural employment guarantee schemes are poorly managed and corrupt with Odisha's Labour Minister also helpless in the face of the nexus.

"I agree if the authorities are not hand in gloves these sort of things would not have happened. I would ensure the law which already exist on this is properly implemented and if required new provisions would be added in the law over the issue," Odisha Labour Minister Bijayshree Routray says.

It's because of the nexus between the middlemen, local police and the politicians that bonded labour problem is thriving in Odisha and no matter how much money the government spends on several welfare schemes like NREGA, these poor labourers continue to suffer.

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Central team in Odisha to assess flood situation

A central team will visit Odisha Monday to assess the damage caused by cyclone Phailin and subsequent floods, as the toll in flood-related incidents rose to 60, an official said here Sunday.

The 12-member inter-ministerial team, led by Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs Rashmi Goel, will be in the state until the end of the month. During their stay they will make an on-the-spot assessment of the damage, a senior official of the office of the state's special relief commissioner said.

The team shall be divided into two groups and will visit the most affected districts like Ganjam, Puri, Balasore and Mayurbhanj, he said.

The severe tropical cyclone Phailin in the Bay of Bengal devastated lives and damaged properties in more than half of Odisha. It made landfall Oct 12 night near Gopalpur in the state's southern Ganjam district, which took the maximum brunt of the cyclone and subsequent floods.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said the state was experiencing heavy rainfall and flooding first due to the cyclone and now because of the low pressure over the Bay of Bengal.

"These rains have been continuing since Oct 10 and besides causing heavy damage to public and private property, the loss to the standing crop has been severe," he told reporters here.

Authorities Saturday confirmed seven more deaths in flood-related incidents, taking the toll to 60.

More: http://zeenews.india.com/news/odisha/central-team-in-odisha-to-assess-flood-situation_886218.html

Change in scenario justified deal with Hindalco: Govt

The government hopes to counter CBI's charge of malafide intent in altering a coal block allocation to favour industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla's Hindalco by arguing that decisions are "not cast in stone" and can be revisited in view of changed scenarios.

A "brief" based on official reasoning recorded in the Hindalco file — now with the CBI — makes the point that the Talabira II coal block allocation dragged on — since 1996 — for almost a decade in which time business plans and economic priorities changed.

Reiterating its defence that the coal ministry was swayed by Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik's advocacy for Birla's Hindalco, the government's case underlines that state governments must be given due weightage in federal framework.

The government is also arguing that the interests of Neyveli Lignite were protected even though it had to split the coal block with Hindalco in a joint venture proposed by former coal secretary P C Parakh, who is under the CBI scanner along with Birla.

The ministry of coal's reasoning on file in September, 2005, indicates Parakh depended heavily on Patnaik's backing for Hindalco in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to justify altering the decision of the steering committee on coal allocations.

The steering committee, headed by Parakh, had found Hindalco ineligible for Talabira II as it had failed to utilize a previous coal block allocation. Hindalco later said this was due to a bauxite lease failing to fructify.

Patnaik, said Parakh, had indicated a clear preference for allocation to Hindalco in the interest of creating more employment and growth of manufacturing in Odisha. Although Hindalco's "satisfaction level" was higher than NLC, the public sector unit will get the same amount of coal as Birla's firm.

NLC's full requirement would be met by the reserves allotted to Mahanadi Coalfields, another public sector firm. Mahanadi was made the third partner in the JV along with NLC and Hindalco.

Additional reasoning in support of the coal ministry's decision is that the total demand of NLC, Hindalco and Odisha sponge iron and steel for 503 million tonnes of coal is met by Talabira II and III blocks that have 553 million tonnes of reserves.

More: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Change-in-scenario-justified-deal-with-Hindalco-Govt/articleshow/24769907.cms?

Odisha: 10 people killed, 1.5 lakh others affected due to flash floods

Ten people have been killed and 1.5 lakh others have been affected due to flash floods in Odisha. Around 129 villages were inundated due to the flash floods in Ganjam district of Odisha. The One Day International between India and Australia which is to be held on Saturday in Cuttack is likely to be cancelled. The Odisha government said schools and colleges in all 12 flood affected districts will be closed till Monday. 

Train services from Khurda to Vishakhapatnam have been badly hit. According to the special relief commissioner, the water levels are above the danger mark in rivers in south Odisha. "Following heavy rain for four days, water level in rivers in south Odisha are above danger level and have entered many villages," Special Relief Commissioner PK Mohapatra said. The blocks affected in flash flood include Chikiti, Hinjili, Sana Khemundi, Patrapur, Dharakote, Aska, Parlakhemundi, Mohana. Some areas of Gajapati district were also reported to have been affected. Mohapatra said the collectors of all coastal districts have been directed to evacuate people from low-lying areas. 

Two persons have died in wall collapse due to rain in Khallikote and Rangeilunda since yesterday, district emergency officer Mahendra Panda said. About 40,000 marooned people had been evacuated from Patrapur, Sana Khemundi, Chikiti, Digappahandi, Hinjili, Sheragada and Purushottampur in Ganjam, he said. Another 10,000 people were evacuated from Gajapati district, the special relief commissioner's office said. With rivers like Rusikulya, Bansadhara and Ghodahada rising due to non-stop rain for the last four days, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik directed the administration to provide cooked food to the people in relief camps, Mohapatra said. "The flash flood has hampered relief and restoration work in places worst-affected by the cyclone," Revenue and Disaster Management minister SN Patro said. 

Some evacuated people have already been sent to relief camps following cyclone Phailin that struck Gopalpur on October 12, with the state government deploying personnel of NDRF, OFRAF and fire services for evacuation, Patro said. Another 80,000 houses have collapsed in the torrential rain, Mohapatra said, adding that the total number of houses damaged in both cyclone and flood in Ganjam has risen to 3.40 lakh. Meanwhile, the local unit of Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) have predicted heavy rain in central and interior districts. A well marked low pressure area now lay over coastal Andhra Pradesh and adjoining areas of Telangana and Rayalaseema area, the latest bulletin said. Rain or thundershower would occur at most places over Odisha in next the 24 hours, it added.

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CBI pulls PMO into probe, asks for Odisha coal files

The CBI on Tuesday asked the prime minister’s office (PMO) for all records related to the allocation of Odisha’s Talabira coalfield to a private firm, three days after the top office said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had approved it on the basis of "merits" of the case placed before him.

“If and when required by the probe, we will seek clarifications from anybody including concerned PMO officials,” a CBI official told HT.

The move came on the day the agency submitted, in a sealed cover, a status report to the Supreme Court on the 14 FIRs and five preliminary enquiries (PEs) it has lodged in the coal allocation scam, which has come to be known as Coalgate. The apex court is monitoring the probe.

In its letter to the PMO, the CBI has asked for files regarding allocation of Talabira coalfield to an Aditya Birla Group firm, Hindalco, in 2005. It has sought records of all correspondence the PMO had with then Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik and Hindalco allegedly before the mine was allocated by the then coal secretary PC Parakh in November 2005, a CBI official said.The agency told the court that last Tuesday it named Parakh, Hindalco, and Aditya Birla Group’s chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla, along with unidentified “others”, in the FIR for alleged irregularities in the 2005 allocation of Talabira coalfield.

Parakh allegedly allocated a 15% share in the coalfield to Hindalco by overturning the “considered deliberations and recommendations” of the inter-ministerial 25th screening committee that was chaired by him and had rejected the firm’s application, says the FIR.

According to CBI director Ranjit Sinha, the agency is not probing any quid pro quo in the case. Birla had twice sent requests for allocation to the PMO that were forwarded to the coal ministry and he also met Parakh prior to the allocation, the FIR claims. Patnaik had allegedly recommended Hindalco to the PMO for the allocation.

Reacting to the FIR, minister of state in the PMO V Narayanasamy said, “We have nothing to hide and have already given thousands of documents to the agency.” The CBI has made it clear it will probe every aspect of the case before taking any further action.

Coal minister Sriprakash Jaiswal labelled Parakh as a ‘Sheikh chilli’ (a daydreamer) for his reported comments that the PM was equally responsible for alleged irregularities in Talabira allocation. Jaiswal backed the statement made by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), which said Singh had taken the decision based on the merits of the case.

In the status report, the CBI also apprised the court of the progress in its probe into the missing coal files, which seek to establish if there was any element of criminal conspiracy involved. The files, which include details of screening committee meetings during which allocation decisions were taken, have been described as vital for the probe by the CBI.

More: http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/cbi-pulls-pmo-into-probe-asks-for-odisha-coal-files/article1-1138571.aspx

Cyclone Phailin 'very severe', heavy rain in parts of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh

Cyclonic storm "Phailin", classified as "very severe" by the weather department, is expected to hit coastal Odisha and Andhra Pradesh on Saturday. In Odisha, officials fear the wind speed could touch levels higher than that of the deadly super-cyclone in 1999 when nearly 15,000 people died.

Here are the latest updates

• An Odisha minister has said the wind speed could touch 200 to 230 km per hour when the cyclone hits the coasts of Northern Andhra Pradesh and Southern Odisha. 

• There is heavy rainfall in parts of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. The Army, Navy and Air Force are on standby in both states for emergency and relief operations.

• Odisha's Disaster Management Minister Surya Narayan Patra told NDTV, "We are fighting against nature. We are better prepared this time, we learnt a lot from 1999."

• People along the coasts have been asked to move to higher grounds. "The first priority will be to save people's lives, ensure food and electricity," said the Odisha minister. The state government keeping choppers and food packages ready for areas expected to be worst hit.

• Heavy rainfall is expected for Odisha and Andhra Pradesh on Saturday, with lots of rain forecast for Bengal the next day.

• Government holidays have been cancelled for the next month in both states.

• Due to the cyclone alert, thousands of power sector employees from the Seemandhra region of Andhra Pradesh, who were on strike to protest against the Centre's decision to split the state, have decided to return to work for now.

• Large parts of the 13 districts of Seemandhra had been without power for six days because of the strike.

• Lakhs of government employees from other departments who have been on strike have also said that they will help with any relief and rehabilitation work by temporarily returning to work if the cyclone hits.

• The Visakhapatnam Cyclone Warning Centre has warned fishermen against venturing into sea.

Credits: ndtv

Andhra, Odisha on high alert as cyclone Phailin nears the coast

The Andhra Pradesh government has issued a high alert in view of the cyclone along cyclonic storm Phailin along coastal Andhra and Odisha. After crossing North Andaman Islands, the deep depression over east central Bay of Bengal on Wednesday night intensified into cyclonic storm Phailin, while remaining practically stationary at about 950 km from Paradip.

 The cyclone would intensify into a severe cyclonic storm in the next 24 hours with a wind speed of 175-185 kmph and cross north Andhra Pradesh and Odisha coast between Kalingapatnam and Paradip by October 12 night, a bulletin by the IMD said. Odisha government has also issued a high alert and cancelled the Dusshera holidays of employees in 14 districts with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik asking collectors to ensure the safety of the people.

 The deployment of Disaster Rapid Force in all vulnerable points has also been ordered. The alert was issued to Balasore, Bhadrak, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Dhenkanal, Jajpur, Cuttack, Kendrapara, Jagatsinghpur, Puri, Khurda, Nayagarh, Ganjam and Gajapati districts. MET department officials predict that the cyclone is likely to cross the coast by Saturday night causing very heavy rainfall. "A deep depression over north Andaman sea has intensified into a cyclonic storm Phailin. It's about 1100 km south east from Vizag.

 It will further intensify to a severe cyclonic storm during the next 24 hours," Met official Narasimha Murthy said. Official sources said the cyclone situation is likely to be discussed at a cabinet meeting scheduled in Bhubaneswar on Thursday. Meanwhile, people living in the coastal region have started panic buying of essential items.

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