UMERKOTE: The demand for a new block comprising eight panchayats under Umerkote block in Nabarangpur district is gaining momentum. On Thursday, a meeting of 500 representatives was held at Podagarh village where block chairperson Sushila Majhi and vice chairperson Shyamal Sarkar were present.
Later, a memorandum was submitted to the collector for establishment of a new block. The villagers said the state government should open a new block office in Podagarh for the development of these panchayats. Their demand stems from the backwardness of the cluster villages where basic amenities of health, education, drinking water, and transportation have remained absent.
There are 26 panchayats in the Umerkote block and natives of Bhandariguda, Sinsari, Mundiguda, Rajpur, Neura, Benara, Karagaon and Torenga panchayats have rallied together seeking their areas be clustered and carved out of Umerkote as a new block. The total population of these eight panchayats stands at 75,000.
Currently, the block headquarters is about 40 kilometers from these panchayats and majority of the residents belong to poor, tribal and oppressed communities. The villagers who took part in the meeting said basic services are absent, while irrigation has become a dream for the people of the eight panchayats. For higher education, students have to go to its nearby towns like Dhodra, Umerkote, Jharigaon and Dabugaon.
They said, due to lack of educational institutions, more than half of the students drop out of school. Due to absence of income-generating opportunities and irrigation, people from these panchayats are forced to migrate to other states for work.