SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, March 11: Pawan Kumar, the Commissioner of North Chhotanagpur Division and Chairman of the Jharia Rehabilitation Development Authority (JRDA), has directed the expedited relocation of families residing in the dangerous fire zones of Jharia.
During the 35th JRDA meeting held today, the Commissioner emphasized the importance of adhering to the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for allotment and compensation to both Legal Title Holders (LTH) and Non-Legal Title Holders (Non-LTH) during the relocation process.
He further instructed that another JRDA meeting be held in three months to review the progress of the relocation efforts and the shifting of families from the fire-prone areas.
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According to official surveys, over 1.4 lakh families, including both legal landowners and encroachers, are living in high-risk fire and subsidence zones in Jharia and must be relocated to safer areas.
Additionally, Pawan Kumar emphasized the need to ensure adequate security, water supply, power, healthcare, and other basic amenities at the Belagaria Township, where the displaced families are being resettled.
The meeting was attended by several senior officials, including Dhanbad Deputy Commissioner and JRDA Managing Director Madhavi Mishra, Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) Chairman and Managing Director Samiran Dutta, Deputy Development Commissioner Sadat Anwar, Additional Collector Vinod Kumar, JRDA In-Charge and Assistant Town Commissioner Prasun Kausik, SDM Rajesh Kumar, DLO Ram Narayan Khalko, DSP Dhirendra Narayan Banka, BCCL Director (Operations) Sanjay Singh, JRDA Advisor DN Mahapatra, and other key officials.