JAJPUR: Locals are up in arms against Ramco Cements, a Chennai based company, which is setting up a 0.9 MTPA cement grinding unit at Haridaspur in Dharmasala block.

United under the banner of Ramco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti led by Thanual sarpanch Amulya Dhana Jena, they have threatened to stage a dharna in front of the company’s under-construction unit if their demands which include jobs for locals, concrete roads, development in the periphery areas of the unit and schools in villages and others, are not met. Jena said the company has illegally encroached upon more than 15 acre public land including gochar in five villages of the block.

He said the company has illegally dug several deep bore wells on its unit’s premises and this has led to water crisis in the locality. The locals alleged the company has encroached upon more Government land than it was allotted to set up its cement grinding unit. “We will suffer as the plant is being built too close to our villages,” said Hemant Padhy, a resident of one of the villages in the block.

Meanwhile, the company’s officials said only 60 people will get direct employment in the plant. “The contract agency which has been assigned the construction of the plant has engaged locals as workers,”  said HR head of Ramco, Haridaspur unit Sarbeswar Mohapatra.Operations at the plant are expected to start in a month.