The Environment and Forests Ministry was in news throughout 2010 -- be it for Vedanta Resources, Posco and Lavasa -- or for Jairam Ramesh's aggressive green activism.
Posco-India on Friday said it is now "comfortable" about its proposed Rs 51,000 crore (Rs 510 billion) steel project in Orissa, a day after its compensation package was approved by a committee set up by the state government to iron out land acquisition issues related to the project.
Let's take a look at the protests against the Posco steel plant in Orissa.
Anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare on Friday opposed entry of foreign companies in the country, including steel major POSCO, saying such investors were exploiting the country's natural resources for their own gain in the name of setting up industries.
The finance minister is out attracting investment in the country but in absence of a land acquisition policy; foreign investment will continue to suffer as it did in case of Posco and Vedanta.
The Orissa government on Wednesday assured the Centre that there was no tribal inhabitant or any other traditional forest dwellers (OTFDs) living at the proposed plant site villages near Paradip.
The Supreme Court Thursday issued guidelines for granting bail after the filing of chargesheet and said trial courts are not precluded from granting interim relief considering the accused's conduct during the probe.
The total investment from these projects will be Rs 1,38,300 crore.
China, the Ukraine crisis and Quad will dominate the discussions, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
Patnaik said the prime minister assured him on the Polavaram dam project in Andhra Pradesh, saying that none of the tribal villages in Orissa would be submerged.
The trouble is largest FDI projects in India have had a tragic history.
It may be noted, out of 4004 acres required for the Posco plant, 3566 acres are government land with the rest 438 acres being private land.
Orissa on Friday said it is geared up to resolve all issues hurting the proposed Rs 6-lakh crore investments in the state, including the Rs 1-lakh crore investments by the global steel giants--ArcelorMittal and Posco.
Orissa MP Jay Panda defends his state's anti-Maoist record.
Because he knows Odisha; and Odisha knows him, observes Aditi Phadnis.
There is a growing voice of supporters of major industrial projects in Orissa that have faced opposition from sections in this little-developed state.
The minor girl was allegedly raped by one Ranjeet, who works as a guard and resides in the ground floor of the same building as the victim.
South Korean steel giant Posco said on Wednesday that it had signed the memorandum of understanding with the Orissa government for a $12 billion Indian steel project.\n\n
Tata Steel has been ranked as the best steel making company in the world, for the third consecutive year, by the World Steel Dynamics Inc, USA.
Many people, not only in business but in society at large, still see progress and social justice as an either-or choice, writes Rajni Bakshi.
With the government looking to divest loss-making steel assets, significant interest from secondary players is most likely this time apart from the anticipated list of large integrated primary steel producers, said industry experts. Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL), NMDC Integrated Steel Plant (NISP)-Nagarnar, Ferro Scrap Nigam Ltd and three units of Steel Authority of India (SAIL) - Alloy Steels Plant, Durgapur; Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Plant, Bhadravati; and Salem Steel Plant, Salem - constitute the divestment list. All the three units of SAIL have been loss-making for more than five years.
A senior police official said a man was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly sexually assaulting her.
The fact that so many victims turn hostile should be a matter of concern. If so many accused persons continue to roam freely in society, this becomes an additional liability to women's safety, points out Rashme Sehgal.
The Environment Ministry was hit by controversies in the year gone by which saw clearances for two big ticket projects -- POSCO and Lavasa -- and exit of Jairam Ramesh as the green minister.
OSCO E&C said Adani had asked it to halt its design work as of July 16, with tentative plans to resume work in early October.
Modi is keen to restart big projects which are stuck for various reasons.
It is time we understood the struggle for land, water and forests as fight for livelihoods.
Posco was cleared because it is India's largest FDI project and the South Korean government lobbied for it. Such things don't happen in democracies which respect the rule of law, says Praful Bidwai.
The year 2010 was a loud year when high profile projects hit the headlines for non-compliance with environmental regulations.
Pune's Lavasa Lake City has run into rough weather with the environment ministry slapping a showcause notice on Lavasa Corporation for carrying out construction activities without its approval in 25,000 hectares.
It is raining mega investment in Orissa, but none of the big ticket projects have made any headway.
The story of land allotment in Mahuva in Saurashtra, Gujarat, is sensational even in this season of scams because here the government allotted its land to a private party, Nirma, and the place allotted was actually a reservoir!
The Jharkhand government has ruled out the transfer of any portion of surplus land from Bokaro Steel Plant of state-run Steel Authority of India (SAIL) to private investors to set up industries.
Industry experts say that even though international companies face problems in setting up new projects on their own, given the problems associated with acquiring land and rehabilitating the displaced people, their keenness to become a part of the growing Indian market remains intact.
State-owned BHEL on Friday said it is in talks with SAIL and Vizag Steel to tie up for manufacturing high grade steel, while Korean steel maker Posco may join the proposed joint venture company as a technology partner.
The comments come amid strong political protests against land acquisition by global steel majors Posco and ArcelorMittal, whose much-touted multi billion dollar projects are still awaiting ground-breaking.
After one stop-work order on the Rs 54,000-crore Posco project, a four-member panel appointed by the Union ministry of environment and forests has dealt a body blow to yet another big-ticket investor in Orissa, the London-based Vedanta Resources Ltd.
Power Minster R K Singh said, "The power supply ramp down and ramp up -- they (officials) handled very smoothly, and I along with my senior officials -- power secretary, POSCO CMD -- were personally monitoring the situation from National Monitoring Centre in the ministry. I congratulate all the engineers of NLDC, RLDC and SLDCs for handling the situation very efficiently especially in huge response to the Prime Minister's call".
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances