About 15 kms from the idyllic hilly town of Semiliguda in South Odisha’s Koraput district, the stage is set for an encore of the Niyamgiri-type agitation, as the tribals gather at the foothills of Mali Parbat to protest against bauxite mining by Hindalco Industries Ltd in the area.

Sharing the concerns of the Dongria Kondh tribe at Niyamgiri, whose protests had put a halt to Vedanta’s bauxite mining plan two years ago, the tribals in Semiliguda are also worried about the protection of their environment and livelihood.

When the anti-Posco brigade celebrated the seventh anniversary of their agitation against the mega steel venture of the South Korean behemoth at Dhinkia near Paradip in Odisha last week, the noise they made against the project was drowned by the murmurs of a split in their ranks.

After fighting against the project for the last seven years, Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) seems to be disintegrating, with many of its supporters unhappy with the present functioning of the leadership.

With escalating protests at the site of Posco