The Maharashtra government has reiterated that prehistoric geoglyphs (a geoglyph is an artistic creation made by positioning or shifting things inside a landscape) in Barsu village in the Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra will be protected while setting up the proposed multi-billion dollar Ratnagiri Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (RRPCL) project in the coastal Konkan region of Maharashtra
While the opposition party leaders raised this issue in the ongoing monsoon session of the State Assembly, the government clearly stated that the land where the geoglyphs are located will be dropped from the land acquisition proposal.
Sudhir Mungantiwar, Maharashtra’s Cultural Minister told the State legislature that the Archeological Department in its survey has found 62 geoglyphs in Barsu. “The land which has these geoglyphs will be dropped from the land acquisition proposal,” he added.
Uday Samant, Minister for Industries told the State Assembly that in April and May 2023, RRPCL conducted soil testing at Barsu village to find out if the site was suitable for the proposed project which is being projected as the world’s largest single location refinery complex.
Samant said that the government was putting efforts to have a dialogue with villagers who are opposing the project, fearing the potential impact on the environment and livelihood in the coastal regions.
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UNESCO’s world heritage site
Environmentalists and conservationists have expressed concern over the project, saying that it would have an impact on the plateau at Barsu consisting of more than 62 geoglyphs. Barsu site features in UNESCO’s tentative world heritage list.
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In the largest cluster of geoglyphs in the coastal belt of Konkan, one in Barsu has a larger-than-life carving of a man and two tigers. The carving is spread over an area of 17.5 x 4.5 m. The man is shown standing between two figures of tigers leaping towards him. The human figure is four meters in height. The man is shown with stretched arms to keep these tigers at bay.
“Scholars have pointed out the similarities of this composition with a motif depicted on at least two seals reported from the excavated sites of the Harappan Civilization-Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro,” the UNESCO website mentions.
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The Project
The proposed 60-million-tonne mega refinery and petrochemical project will be set up by RRPCL. PSU oil companies like Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation, and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation are the promoters of the company on behalf of the Union Government.
Along with fuel, the project will develop various downstream petrochemicals. However, the project is stuck in controversy and the State government has been looking for an appropriate site where locals would not oppose the project.
Earlier the project was planned in Nanar village and was shifted to Barsu after opposition of the local farming and fishing communities in Nanar. However, the Barsu villagers have refused to support the project and have stringently opposed the land acquisition procedure.