The POSCO project, often touted as India’s “largest foreign investment”, involves a captive iron ore mine, a steel plant and a private port. The current conflict is mainly in the proposed steel plant area, for which POSCO has sought 4,004 acres of land (of which about 3,100 are forest land). The people of the area are opposing the project and have been continuously protesting since 2005, when the MoU was signed. Yet, even after three of its own committees found that the project clearance was illegal, the Environment Ministry has gone ahead and upheld its own clearance for the project.

Update: In April 2016, following over a decade of continuous resistance and struggle by the communities of the area, POSCO formally informed the National Green Tribunal that it would not be undertaking its project for now. But the area remains devastated and people continue to suffer the consequences of the illegal land grabbing that took place for this project.