BHUBANESWAR: The indefinite strike by OAS and ORS officers protesting the assault on BMC additional commissioner Ratnakar Sahoo in Bhubaneswar has brought essential government services to a near standstill across the state.
In Kendrapara district, official works have come to a grinding halt causing widespread inconvenience to the public. From registration of sale deeds, mutation cases to issuance of income and other certificates, all revenue-related services have been paralysed. Sources said except for some clerks and grade IV employees, no official was available to process the growing backlog of cases in the court of Kendrapara sub-collector.
The mass leave of OAS and ORS officers also paralysed government work in Kalahandi. The district collectorate wore a deserted look as OAS officers including the ADMs were on leave. Similar was the scenario in the sub-collector’s offices at Bhawanipatna and Dharamgarh.
Similarly, administrative works in Mayurbhanj and Balasore districts have been hit for the last three days due to the ongoing strike. The administrative paralysis hit relief distribution work in Balasore as tehsildars and BDOs in flood-affected areas went on leave. The district administration instructed other officers to monitor distribution of relief in the flood-affected blocks.
In Jagatsinghpur and Koraput, public service delivery was badly hit as OAS and ORS officers went on leave. In Jajpur, around 40 OAS officers were on mass leave.
Administrative operations were significantly impacted in Sundargarh. The pinch of the ongoing strike was more visible in rural pockets where people seeking revenue works or welfare scheme-related services faced major inconvenience.
The functioning of government offices across Sambalpur and Deogarh districts also came to a grinding halt. The strike has hit functioning of government offices in Angul, Dhenkanal, Ganjam, Kandhamal, Gajapati and Rayagada districts.
Sahoo, a senior OAS officer, was brutally assaulted by a group of individuals during the weekly public grievance hearing session at BMC office in Bhubaneswar on July 30. Alleged to be supporters of a local BJP leader, the miscreants kicked and punched Sahoo and dragged him out of the BMC office in full public view. So far, six persons including senior BJP leader Jagannath Pradhan have been arrested for their involvement in the attack.