Maha Govt declares over 300 acres of land near Barsu refinery site as industrial area

As per the gazette notification issued by the state government, a certain area of the Wadi Khurd village has been notified as industrial area under the Maharashtra Industrial Development Act, 1961.

Just a few kilometres away from the new industrial zone lies Barsu village, in the same tehsil, where Ratnagiri Refinery Petrochemicals Ltd (RRPCL), a company set up in 2017 and jointly owned by state-owned Indian Oil Corporation, BPCL Ltd and HPCL Ltd, was formed to set up the multi-billion dollar refinery project.

Initially, the project was proposed in Nanar village in Ratnagiri district but following opposition by local residents and environmental activists, the then state government led by Uddhav Thackeray wrote to the Centre in January 12, 2022, that it would identify 13,000 acres for acquisition in Barsu village in Rajapur city, for the project.

But work stalled after large protests by villagers early 2023 when the state government led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis started survey work and soil testing in Barsu, forcing the administration to deploy a huge police force.

Opposing the project, the villagers of Barsu-Solgaon and neighbouring villages in the Konkan have cited potential impact on the environment and the livelihoods of local communities which is mostly dependent upon the cultivation of mango orchards as well as jack fruit and cashew plantations and fishing.

In 2019, the MIDC had declared some parts of Barsu, Solgaon and other villages as industrial areas.