Kuntala Lahiri-Dutt and others (“Land Acquisition and Dispossession: Private Coal Companies in Jharkhand”, EPW, 11 February 2012), touch on several important issues, but with a sophistication which is expected from academics. The piece, however, portrays only the tip of the iceberg; the grass-roots situation is much more serious and tense. Land acquisition by privately-owned coal
mining companies has assumed very sinister proportions. This letter is to bring some more examples to the attention of EPW readers. (Letters)