OCAC Kicks off Punarbas project for land oustees

Jayajit Dash, Kolkata/ Bhubaneswar
Business Standard
The Orissa Computer Application Centre (OCAC), the technical directorate of the Orissa IT department, has set in motion its Punarbas project aimed at automation of land acquisition process and ensuring effective monitoring of the Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) activities in the state.

The project is to be implemented on a pilot basis for the proposed ventures of Jindal Steel & Power Limited (JSPL) at Angul, Aditya Aluminium Limited (AAL) at Sambalpur and Lower Indra Irrigation project at Nuapada.

Based on the successful implementation of these pilot trials, Punarbas would be extended to other industrial projects in the state. Punarbas is a software application developed by CSM Technologies, a city-based IT firm.

OCAC has kicked off the process of collating data pertaining to land records as well as R&R activities in the villages affected by JSPL and AAL.

“We expect to collect all the relevant data relating to the size of the land and its ownership in at least one village affected by JSPL and AAL by the end of this month. The entire process of data collection and its subsequent automation in 35 affected villages of AAL and 45 villages of JSPL is set to be completed within six months”, PK Rout, principal consultant (programme management unit), OCAC said.

OCAC is going ahead aggressively with the pilot trials on the projects of JSPL and AAL and the status of land acquisition as well as R&R activities is being reviewed constantly, he added.

The Punarbas project is being implemented at cost of Rs 1.5 core of which Rs one crore is funded by the state government and the balance Rs 50 lakh by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Apart from providing financial assistance, UNDP is also monitoring the progress of work on the collection of data related to land acquisition and R&R activities in the affected villages of JSPL and AAL. The work of data collection on the land records of the affected villages of the Lower Indira Irrigation project at Nuapada is set to commence after six months.

The Punarbas project is expected to ensure faster valuation of land as well as expedite the process of acquisition and handing over of land to the industries so that land acquisition process is completed in a time bound manner.

The project would also establish a responsive grievance redressal system for speedy disposal of grievances relating to land acquisition and R&R issues.