Pottangi: Even as the Supreme Court advised Odisha and its neighbouring state Andhra Pradesh to resolve the dispute over Kotia panchayat and similar other issues between them amicably, the latter is still resorting to inducement tactics to establish their hold over Kotia.
The apex court has given around six weeks’ time to bring out a political resolution to Kotia dispute but the Andhra Pradesh government has defied the order and strayed into Kotia panchayat again and conducted grievance redressal programme.
Andhra Pradesh Police stirred up the hornet’s nest again by conducting a grievance redressal camp at Neradivalsa village of Kotia panchayat under ‘Spandana’ programme.
A team of police officials from Andhra Pradesh led by SI Rohini Preeti addressed the villagers in the camp and received their complaints in writing.
Residents of Neredivalsa and neighbouring Dhulipadar, Uparsembi, Talasembi villages participated in this camp. The villagers demanded a passenger bus service from Salur in Andhra Pradesh to the panchayat as they had to commute to the area on a regular basis for work.
They also demanded documents like ration cards, Aadhaar cards, drinking water facilities and caste certificates besides raising other issues of their locality at the camp.
They also demanded to organise health camps every week at least for two to three days as the people living on the bordering areas frequently fall ill. They were reportedly assured of speedy action by the Andhra Pradesh team.
SI Preeti also met two poor elderly women (both sisters) at Neredivalsa village and gave away some financial assistance after she learnt that Odisha government had given Rs 10,000 as assistance.
The house of the two old women was damaged after a tamarind tree fell on their house. She said that she will prepare a report and submit it to Vizianagaram district police for action from their end.
Andhra government has started the programme to ensure that the villagers will be benefited with the government’s welfare schemes, an official of Andhra police said. “The public grievance redressal camp at Neradivalsa village was successful.
Such camps will continue every Monday,” said a police official. It is worth mentioning that August 31, the Supreme Court had advised the governments of both the states to resolve the border dispute involving Kotia region by engaging in bilateral discussions.
A constitution bench comprising Justice Ajay Khanwilkar and Justice Sanjiv Khanna had granted a period of six weeks to both the states to hold political discussions and resolve the issue through talks at the political level.
Earlier February 10 this year, the state government had knocked the doors of the Supreme Court seeking contempt of court proceedings against the Andhra Pradesh government over Kotia border dispute.
Kotia dispute is a long pending border issue between Andhra Pradhesh and Odisha. Both the states have been claiming sovereign rights over the area, which consist of 27 small tribal hamlets on the border.
AP bid to reopen AWC in Gajapati district –
Gajapati: Aggressive meddling into Odisha’s affairs by the Andhra Pradesh government was witnessed again Tuesday after Andhra officials accompanied by police visited a temporary Anganwadi centre they had set up at Manikpatna village, under Gangabada Panchayat in Gajapati district after the district administration sealed it two days back.
Reports said that Andhra officials had established a temporary Anganwadi centre in the tribal dominated village of Manikpatna under Gangabada panchayat of Raigarh block in Gajapati district.
However, the Gajapati district officials shut down the centre after conducting an enquiry two days back.
Tension prevailed in the village as the officials of the Andhra government visited the village to reopen the centre and had a face-off with the district officials of Gajapti who were already there.
A meeting was held where officials of both Odisha and Andhra governments decided to demarcate the border areas so that the jurisdiction of Anganwadi centres could be established.
PNN