Berhampur: A chorus for merger of three villages on the outskirts of the city with Berhampur Municipal Corporation (BeMC) has gained momentum.
A joint action committee (JAC) formed by the denizens living on the city’s outskirts has been making this demand for long.
The JAC led by its president Sanjiv Kumar Pattnaik has questioned why the authorities are delaying in fulfilling their demand and if there are any hurdles in the merger of these areas with the civic body.
The committee has demanded that the state government make it clear whether there is any political or legal reason behind the delay in merging the villages with the civic body.
The members have alleged that the local public representatives are keeping mum when they raise the demand for merger of the areas on the city’s outskirts with BeMC.
They reminded that the Berhampur MP and MLA at a meeting of the committee in the past had assured them that the areas in city outskirts will be definitely merged with the BeMC before the panchayat elections.
However, they are yet to fulfill their promise though the panchayat elections are drawing near and are scheduled in February next year.
They said a resolution was passed to include three villages of three panchayats with BeMc but it is yet to be implemented. The members alleged that the state government gives priority to its political interest instead of the merger demand.
As a result, the areas in city outskirts have been neglected and are bereft of any development. Pattnaik warned that the committee will prepare a special strategy and intensify its agitation for fulfillment of its demand in coming days.
PNN