At least 70 individuals, including 58 security personnel, sustained injuries on Tuesday during a clash with local tribals opposing the construction of a road to the Sijimali bauxite mine in Rayagada district, officials reported. The tribals, who have been vocally against the road project in Shagabari village under the Kashipur block, allegedly attacked police and district administration officials with swords, axes, and stones.
ADG (Law and Order) Sanjay Kumar stated that the injured police officers were taken to various hospitals in Rayagada and Visakhapatnam, with some women officers among those hurt in the mob’s stone pelting.
Rayagada SP Swathy S Kumar mentioned that approximately 250 villagers surrounded police personnel who had gone to Kantamal village within the Kashipur police station area to apprehend a suspect wanted in 14 criminal cases. The suspect is reportedly a tribal leader opposing the road construction.
“Our personnel, including policewomen, were encircled and pelted with stones. In self-defense, we lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the mob and evacuated the injured,” Kumar explained.
Six injured police personnel, including three women, were transferred to a hospital in Visakhapatnam for advanced treatment. Among the injured officers were Rayagada SDPO Girishankar Sahu and Kashipur police station IC Dev Mallick.
In response to the unrest, the district administration has imposed prohibitory orders in Shagabari village to maintain law and order, with additional police forces deployed in the area.
Rayagada Collector Kulkarni Ashutosh C visited the site to engage in discussions with the protesting tribals, according to an official.
Conversely, the ‘Sachetan Nagarika Manch’, an organization advocating for tribal rights, claimed that 10 villagers were seriously injured due to police actions. “Armed police personnel entered the village under the pretext of executing a non-bailable warrant and attacked the villagers. At least 10 people, including six women, were injured,” asserted Manch leader Narendra Mohanty.
In a letter addressed to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, the Manch requested immediate intervention and the withdrawal of police forces from the area, emphasizing that local tribals oppose the road construction for a private mining company.
Mohanty pointed out that residents in the Kashipur area have been against the Sijimali bauxite mine project since the Odisha government allocated it to a private company in 2023. The administration has been facilitating the construction of a road to the mine. CPI(M)’s Odisha unit secretary Suresh Panigrahi condemned the police actions and the state government’s policies, demanding the immediate withdrawal of prohibitory orders and forces, the release of previously arrested anti-displacement leaders, and a halt to the road construction.
