Sanjay Raut says locals have no trust in Shiv Sena-BJP govt over Barsu refinery project

Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said the locals at Barsu, where a refinery has been proposed, have no trust in the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Maharashtra, days after NCP president Sharad Pawar advised the ruling dispensation to hold a dialogue with those villagers opposing the project. 

Raut also alleged that the refinery project is being executed to protect the interests of politicians and outsiders who have bought land at Barsu and demanded that the government make the list public of such people.

I heard what Sharad Pawar said that there should be a dialogue with the locals and take them into confidence. But what should one do? They don’t have trust in the government, Raut said.

Pawar on Wednesday said the Maharashtra government should hold a dialogue with local villagers who are opposing a refinery project in the coastal Ratnagiri district. If the issue was not resolved even after that, an alternative site should be found, he said.

NCP chief said his party did not oppose development projects in Konkan, but finding out the opinion of the locals was a must. A section of residents of Barsu village in Ratnagiri district’s Rajapur tehsil, more than 400 km from Mumbai, are up in arms against the project and the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress, the NCP’s allies in the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition, are supporting them.