Somnath Dugga - Rowghat Sangharsh Samiti
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Somnath Dugga is an Indian environmental defender and a member of Rowghat Sangharsh Samiti, an organisation fighting against the Rowghat iron-ore mining project in Adivasi lands, in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district. He is also the Gram Patel (traditional village headman) of Anjarel village in Narayanpur, located on the edge of the mine, and has participated in numerous peaceful protests against the project in the past few years. On 31 May 2022, he was severely beaten by the police until lost consciousness, detained, and allegedly tortured in the forest. Five of his family members were also reportedly attacked and threatened by the police and asked not to report the incident. The attack follows Samiti's legal complaint to authorities about illegal mining activities on 12 April, 2022.
The Steel Authority of India Ltd. (SAIL) owns the largest block of the Rowghat iron-ore mining project. Their major steel production unit is the Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP). In 2017, SAIL's Bhilai Steel Plant has appointed ACB Mining Private Ltd as developer and operator for the Rowghat iron ore mines.