Rajasthan: Hanumangarh ethanol plant unrest enters fourth day amid talks with administration

Jaipur, Dec 12 (PTI) Protest against the under-construction ethanol plant in Rajasthan's Hanumangarh district entered the fourth day on Friday amid talks with the administration.

Internet services in the area remain suspended and police have booked 107 people, detaining 40 so far.

A core committee meeting of the protestors is scheduled on Friday at the Tibbi gurdwara, where hundreds of villagers have taken refuge since clashes erupted on Wednesday.

Hanumangarh district collector Khushal Yadav told PTI that talks are underway and the situation is under control.

"Protestors have put forth their demand, including not to take any punitive action. We are looking into the demands," he said.

He said that the issues, including the factory not having environmental clearances and allotting irrigated land, will be examined.

Ravjot Singh of the Ethanol Factory Hatao Sangharsh Samiti said the agitation has been peaceful for 16 months but escalated only after the administration attempted to suppress it.

"The collector and superintendent of police suppressed our voice from reaching higher authorities, shut down the internet and deployed a heavy police force. The movement will continue until the plant is removed," Singh told reporters.

Several women alleged that police fired at protestors and displayed empty shells at the gurdwara. Many villagers have locked their homes and moved to their relatives' houses.

All India Kisan Sabha district general secretary Mangej Chaudhary alleged that "police weapons were rusted, otherwise they would have killed hundreds". He announced that farmers will lay siege to the district collectorate on December 17.

Political reactions deepened the rift, with local BJP MLA Gurveer Singh Barar meeting farmers on Thursday night. However, ruling party leader and law minister Jogaram Patel alleged the violence was sponsored.

"This was not a farmers' movement. About a thousand people from outside Rajasthan carried out the violence. The government is ready for talks. Lawful demands will be accepted, but taking the law into one's hands will not be allowed," Patel said.

Ravjot Singh countered that the administration itself failed to protect buses and that the fire broke out even before protestors reached the factory area.

Police have maintained that outsiders instigated the unrest, with ADG V K Singh saying Wednesday's events were peaceful until external elements triggered the violence.

Farmers have also alleged that the land for the plant was acquired by falsely declaring fertile fields as barren. Gurpal Singh, a local farmer, told reporters that the site is extremely fertile, producing the finest basmati rice, with groundwater available at 40-50 feet.

Pollution from the plant will destroy 70 bighas around it, they asserted.

Another farmer, Balram Saharan, alleged that the land changed ownership twice before being transferred to the company. "The purpose of the land was hidden from us. They even leased it out for cultivation for two years before pushing through the transfer," he added.

Protest leader Man Singh Rathore said the ethanol unit will require 60 lakh litres of fresh water daily. "Producing one litre of ethanol consumes 3,000 to 10,000 litres of potable water. The factory will destroy water, climate and soil. Its waste falls in the red-category pollution zone," he said.

The plant, being set up by Chandigarh-based Dune Ethanol Pvt Ltd, is a 40-MW grain-based unit cleared under the 'Rising Rajasthan' investment agreements of 2022. Authorities said all environmental and state approvals were obtained.

Violence first broke out on Wednesday when hundreds of farmers stormed the construction site in Rathi Khera after two rounds of talks with the administration failed.

Protesters broke the boundary wall, set the office on fire and clashed with police. Security forces used lathicharge and tear-gas shells, while farmers torched at least 14 vehicles, the police said.

Security personnel, including RAC and Home Guards, remain deployed in large numbers in the area. PTI AG APL APL