18 Odisha families who left homes due to Maoist threat want rehabilitation

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Nuapada, Aug 21:

Terrorised by the Maoist threat, 18 families of Patapani village of Tikrapada panchayat under Komna block in Odisha’s Nuapada district who had left their village, say they want the government to support their rehabilitation.

These villagers, scattered across the district, are earning their livelihood with much difficulty and have now requested the district administration to take steps for their proper rehabilitation.

The members of the 18 families of Patapani had gone to Nuapada to present their grievances before the Zilla Parishad vice chairman Bhanu Pratap Singh Majhi. Later, Majhi, along with the family members, met the Project Director, District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) Pradip Nayak and submitted a memorandum.

“I will take up the matter with the district collector very soon”, Nayak said.

Panic had gripped the village after the brutal murder of Chaitanya Majhi, a Siksha Sahayak, by a group of Maoists on February 8 last year.

After the incident, Majhi’s family left the village. Later, 17 families also left their homes, one after another, due to the constant threat of violence by Maoists who used the village as a safe haven since it is difficult for the police and the district officials to reach the inaccessible location.

It may be mentioned here that there is no road communication to Patapani village located on the border of Nuapada and Bolangir districts. People of the village used to travel by foot for miles across the hills to reach the nearby block.