Tuesday, January 3 2006 09:42 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Kalinga Nagar (Orissa): At least nine persons, including two women, were killed and 17 were injured following a clash between villagers opposing a steel project and the police in this industrial hub of Jajpur district yesterday (Jan 02, 2006), official sources said.

The toll might be 13 as four bodies, suspected to have been victims of the violence, were still in the custody of the villagers who were squatting on the Daitari-Paradip Expressway, the sources said.

Curfew had been imposed in the Kalinga Nagar area following the violent incidents.

About 1,000 people, mostly tribals, belonging to Chandia, Champakoila and Gobarghati villages near the upcoming industrial hub had allegedly attacked the police while protesting against the earth work started by Tata Steel.

The situation aggravated when the crowd allegedly hacked a police havaldar G P Mohanty to death.

Director General of Police, Suchit Das told sources that police lathi charged, burst teargas squibs and fired rubber bullets to disperse the crowd without any effect.

Police then opened fire in which five persons were killed on the spot. One of the injured died on way to hospital at Cuttack while two persons succumbed to injuries at hospital.

Senior officials were tight lipped about the number of casualties as four bodies, possibly victims of the firing, were with the villagers squatting on the Daitari-Paradip Expressway. If those are taken into account, the toll is 13.

Sources who visited the spot was told by the angry villagers that they would continue to squat there disrupting traffic till the government paid adequate compensation to the next of kin of the victims.

"We will also not part with our land for any industrial project," some villagers said.

The injured persons, most of them with bullet injuries, were being treated at the Cuttack hospital, the sources said.

They included several policemen who suffered injuries when the crowd attacked them with stones and arrows.

"Most of these patients are in critical condition," the attending doctor Dr. M.Q.Khan of the hospital said.

Amidst opposition demand for a judicial probe into the incident, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announced ex-gratia of Rs. One lakh to the next of kin of the deceased.

Describing the incident as 'unfortunate', he said the cost of the treatment of the injured would be borne by the government.

Five platoons of armed police had been deployed in the upcoming steel hub where curfew had been imposed.

Tension continued to grip the area amidst unconfirmed reports that the tribals were regrouping. Senior police officials and reinforcements had been rushed to Kalinga Nagar.

State Congress president Jayadev Jena, while condemning the incident, demanded a judicial inquiry.

Meanwhile, a delegation of leaders belonging to six opposition parties; Congress, OGP, JMM, CPI, CPI(M) and Janata Dal(S) is scheduled to visit Kalinga Nagar tomorrow for an on-the-spot study of the situation.