Based on primary source material, this paper unravels the undermining of development of vital transport infrastructure in Orissa, namely, Paradeep port and a proposed railway line for exploiting the rich mineral resources of the state

Orissa is going through a "steel revolution". In the past three years, the state government has signed more than 40 MoUs with companies, both domestic and foreign, signing off 20 billion tonnes of iron ore that it is supposed to be sitting on. But it has also meant destruction of the natural habitats of people, flora and fauna.

The iniquitous development agenda pursued by successive governments at the centre and the state has rendered several tribal groups in Orissa, who reside in some of the poorer, more inaccessible districts of the state, largely marginal to the governance process.