The decision was made after the SNM’s attorney, Sisir Das, fiercely contested the postponement, alleging that not even one inch of land had really been physically transferred to the East Coast Railway (ECoR).
Things appear to be moving, if slowly, over two years after two Public Interest Litigations (PILs) were launched to quicken land acquisition for the long-delayed Talcher-Bimlagarh new train line project.
The Orissa High Court (HC) Chief Justice Dr. S. Muralidhar recently ordered the Odisha Government to submit its response on the status of land acquisition by October 10 after hearing the PIL of Sachetan Nagarik Manch (SNM) submitted by PP Ray and 31 other parties.
The decision was made after the SNM’s legal representative, Sisir Das, vehemently opposed the delay, claiming that in the 19 years since the project’s approval in 2003–2004, not a single inch of land had actually been physically transferred to the East Coast Railway (ECoR) in the districts of Sundargarh and Deogarh. Das said that the court required him to submit his response by the same deadline.
Prasanta Patnaik 
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