Jagdamba Steel encroaches upon over 25 bighas of land belonging to Parsa National Park

Park and survey officials are under scrutiny as they delay retrieving government land from the industry under influence

BARA, June 30: The Bhangre River, located in Jitpur Simra sub-metropolitan city-2, used to flow freely until a decade ago. Since 2064 BS, this river has been confined within the high walls of Jagdamba Steel Pvt. Ltd.

Strangely, the Bhangre River, located inside the Jagdamba industry, appears to be outside the compound according to the map. But in reality, the river is well inside the high walls of the industry. No one here wants to talk about its inside story. The reason: The influence of Jagdamba Steel Private Limited.

The influence of Jagdamba Steel appears so pervasive that not only do the common people here avoid discussing it, but so do the national park officials and people’s representatives. Jagdamba Steel has not only placed the river inside its perimeter but also allegedly embezzled several bighas of land belonging to the Parsa National Park. A case has already been filed with the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) on the suspicion of encroaching on over 25 bighas of land belonging to the Parsa National Park. A complaint was lodged at the CIAA headquarters in Tangal on February 4, 2024, for investigation.

"Jagdamba Steel, located in Jeetpur Simra sub-metropolitan city, has taken more than 25 bighas of land in Parsa National Park, constructing infrastructure and doing business," the complaint stated.

“Since the officials at the park and forest office are mute spectators even as the adjoining Hulas Aluminum and Hulas Steel have also encroached upon two bighas of public land, it is respectfully requested that action be taken as per the laws drawn according to the old field book and map,” the complaint further reads.

After the complaint, the CIAA issued a letter to the Department of National Parks and Wildlife on February 13, 2024, instructing them to provide all related documents. The CIAA, in its letter sent to the Department of National Parks and Wildlife, asked to provide relevant documents along with opinion on what happened regarding the encroachment of more than 25 bighas of Parsa National Park by Jagdamba Steel Pvt. Ltd.

Upon repeated follow-up by the Department, Parsa National Park sent a letter to Jagdamba Steel on February 21, asking for details of the land occupied by the industry. After the park's inquiry, the industry sent its reply, giving details of the numbers of 32 land plots on February 21. The industry, in its reply, reportedly claimed that it has been utilizing the land after purchasing it from different people on different dates and taking some land from individuals and organizations. The industry maintained that it has been using the land without encroaching the land of any individual, organization, national park, or the government.

Santosh Bhagat, information officer of Parsa National Park, told Republica, "I cannot say that the industry has encroached on the park's land. Please do not ask me about this." When asked whom to talk to about the issue, Bhagat replied, "Is this today’s incident? Measuring the area of land is not our job. Do ask the survey department and office."

Bhagat said that they have already sent the details sought by the Department. "We cannot do anything more than this,” said Bhagat. When asked that the Department has also sought the park's opinion about the embezzlement of their land by Jagdamba Steel, Bhagat replied, "That is not our job; we sent the information given by the industry as it is. That's all we could do."

On the other hand, Chinta Mani Yadav, head of the District Survey Office, Bara, said they have not yet received any such letter from the park for surveying the land. He said, "There are methods, procedures, and rules for measuring government land. After receiving the application, employees are deployed to measure the government land after fulfilling all these criteria.”

Yadav clarified that they have not received any application in the first place. According to an official of the Department of Survey, there is no need to ask for staff from the surveyor's office to measure the park's land as the park has its own surveyors and skilled manpower with equipment. He said, "By using GPS and other modern technologies, the park itself can easily delineate its border."

Not much has been done even after the complaint was filed at the CIAA on embezzlement of several bighas of land belonging to the national park by Jagdamba Steel. After receiving the complaint, the CIAA wrote to the Department, and the Department wrote to Parsa National Park. The Parsa National Park subsequently wrote to Jagdamba Steel to send the details of the land it currently owns. The details given by the industry refuting any wrongdoing in its clarification have reached the anti-graft body.

It has been three decades since Jagdamba Steel Pvt. Ltd. was established. It is said that this industry was established in Simra of Bara by purchasing about 8 bighas of land, which shared a border with the then Parsa Wildlife Reserve. Initially, the industry had purchased 5 bighas, 15 kathas, and 11.3 dhurs of land.

There are 32 separate plot numbers in the details submitted by the industry to the park authorities. Parsa National Park has stated that it will only be known after investigation whether the details of the land submitted by the industry are correct or not.

An investigation is yet to be conducted to determine whether the 25 bighas of land occupied by Jagdamba Steel were purchased legitimately or if the park or government land was irregularly numbered with the connivance of park officials, land surveyors, village-level officials, and the local administration.

Satya Bahadur Shrestha, president of Radhakrishna Community Forest near the Jagadamba Steel Industry, informed Republica, "There has been a complaint about Jagdamba encroaching on park land. Whether or not the 25 bighas have been encroached upon will be revealed through investigation. But something must have happened," Shrestha said, adding, "The leaves won’t move if the wind doesn't blow."

The eastern side of Jagdamba Steel Pvt. Ltd. is connected to the Bara-Parsa industrial corridor, while the western side is linked to the buffer zone of the park. Locals say that in the past, some chief conservation officers of the park tried to evict Jagdamba Steel from illegally occupying the land belonging to the park. However, locals allege that officials later stopped making any such attempts as industry officials either tried to influence them with expensive gifts or got them transferred from Parsa.

Ramchandra Khatiwada, chief conservation officer of Parsa National Park, declined to comment on the industrial encroachment on park land and referred inquiries to Information Officer Santosh Bhagat.

Recently, the Ministry of Home Affairs has written letters to district administration offices to protect encroached public and government lands across the country.

Bhangre River Wetlands in Crisis

The freely flowing Bhangre River was a wetland where various birds and wildlife were seen before. However, this wetland area is currently in crisis due to the confinement of the Bhangre River by Jagdamba Steel.

Locals state that the wetlands of the Bhangre River, which flows through the park, are in crisis since Jagdamba Steel enclosed this river within its walls. This river not only supported the life of birds and wildlife but also provided drinking water to wild animals in the forest and park area.

The river, which is about 32 feet wide, flows through the park and joins the Jamuni River via Jeetpur. Locals accuse that Jagdamba Steel has converted this river into a channel for dumping industrial wastewater. Currently, the southern part of the river is on the map, but the northern part connected to Jagdamba is not even marked on the map, according to a local resident.

This river also has its own history. A local elder recalled, "An inquiry committee was formed under the leadership of then Regional Forest Director Ramdev Yadav to investigate river erosion. However, the committee's investigation revealed that the river's map was missing. In the absence of the river's map, the committee recommended allowing the river to flow along its original path without obstruction.”

It is surprising to note that the Bhangre River is about 28 feet wide to the north and south of the Jagdamba industry. But the river disappears on the map where Jagdamba's new structure has been built.