Billed as India’s biggest FDI deal, how Posco’s Odisha project fell through | Specials News

Land acquisition became the most visible and immediate obstacle. The original project required 4,004 acres in Jagatsinghpur district. Of this, 437.68 acres was private land and 3,566.32 acres belonged to the government.

The project area had a relatively prosperous rural economy compared with many other parts of Odisha, particularly because of betel-vine cultivation. Many villagers, therefore, viewed the land as a productive asset that could not easily be replaced by a one-time compensation payment. The Odisha government went ahead with the acquisition process, nevertheless. 

However, though the Centre granted environmental clearance, forest diversion remained under prolonged scrutiny. Then, the National Green Tribunal suspended the project’s environmental clearance for a period, citing deficiencies in the environmental impact assessment. Faced with these hurdles, Posco progressively scaled back its plans, considering an 8 mt first phase and reducing its immediate land requirement from 4,004 acres to around 2,700 acres.