IOCL pipeline stir: Congress supports agitating villagers

PARADIP: Senior Congress leader and Jatni MLA Suresh Routray on Sunday slammed the State government and Jagatsinghpur district administration over laying of pipeline for IOCL’s Paradip-Hyderabad Product Pipeline (PHPL) project on ‘gochar’ (grazing) land in Dhinkia village.

Joining the villagers, who are staging dharna in front of Phulkhai temple for the last 15 days, Routray said laying of pipeline on grazing land is violation of Odisha Government Land Settlement Act, 1962. “I am with the agitators. The district administration’s support to IOCL for laying pipeline in violation of rules can no longer be tolerated,” he said.