JAGATSINGHPUR: Two families belonging to Kalioda and Biraballavpur villages in Jagatsinghpur’s Alasudha panchayat have reportedly been ostracised and prevented from cultivating paddy in their farmlands for the last seven months after they allegedly reprimanded other villagers during a committee meeting.
Both the villages under the committee Mahadei Tota Yatra unitedly organise and celebrate various festivals and conduct opera shows every year. In March, the committee members demarcated the said land and axed a few trees belonging to Arjun Swain and Debasish Swain grown on the land for the smooth conduct of festivals.
However, when the duo came to know of the matter, they reportedly picked a fight with the committee members and reprimanded them for cutting their trees. Peeved, the villagers called a meeting and decided to ostracise the families and further decided to penalise whoever was found interacting with the two families.
Debasish and Arjun alleged that nearly 10 members of both their families have been ostracised in the last seven months. “We have been refrained from attending any festival and are living in isolation all these months. Besides, around one acre of our farmlands are lying barren since villagers have restricted us from carrying out cultivation,” they rued. They said they had apprised the matter to the district collector in June but the issue is yet to be resolved.