National Aluminium Company Limited’s Rs.18,000-Cr Expansion Faces Heat In Angul; Locals Allege “Media Silence”
Debaranjan Samal
Associate editor,Odishabarta
Expansion Under Fire; Locals Allege “Managed Optics” Ahead Of Hearing
Angul: The proposed Rs.18,000-crore expansion of National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO)’s smelter and refinery complex here has triggered not just land and livelihood concerns, but also serious allegations of “image management” ahead of the crucial environmental public hearing.
The PSU is seeking to acquire 137 acres to expand its refinery capacity to 3.1 MTPA, nearly double smelter output to about 1 MTPA and increase captive power generation from 1,200 MW to 2,280 MW. Production from Patangi bauxite mines is also set to be ramped up.
While the company has positioned the move as a growth-driven investment, villagers say the expansion threatens to intensify pollution and displacement in an already industrially burdened region.
Hearing Marked By Distrust
At Wednesday’s public hearing chaired by additional district magistrate Uday Mahapatra, residents from Kangula, Bentapur, Gopinathpur and Kulad villages demanded:
One permanent job per displaced family:-
Compensation at revised market rates
Binding rehabilitation guarantees:-
Although environmental concerns were raised, the dominant theme was livelihood insecurity and distrust of long-term commitments.
Allegations of Pre-Hearing “Media Outreach”:-Adding to the controversy, several locals alleged that months before the hearing, select media representatives from Delhi were invited to Angul by NALCO.
According to these claims:
Visiting journalists were given “grand hospitality” at the plant.
They were taken to selected villages where, locals allege, specific individuals had been “prepared in advance” to present a favourable picture.
The company’s executive director reportedly accompanied the visiting media to Puri as part of the tour.
Expensive gifts and monetary benefits were allegedly provided at the time of departure.
Protesters alleged that the objective behind the outreach was to shape national coverage in favour of the proposed land acquisition and environmental clearance process.
There is no independent verification of these allegations. Neither NALCO nor the media organisations named informally by locals have publicly responded to these claims.
Company’s Position
NALCO officials, including executive director Sachidananda Jena, maintained that the expansion would boost aluminium output, generate employment and adopt modern pollution-control technologies. They highlighted peripheral development initiatives and said all statutory norms were being followed.
Growth Versus Ground Reality
With land acquisition now at the centre of the debate, the Angul expansion reflects a familiar fault line — industrial ambition versus local consent.
As the public hearing report moves to environmental authorities for appraisal, the allegations of managed narratives and suppressed dissent add a new layer of scrutiny to an already contentious project
Nalco PicSource;GooGle
