JAJPUR: Residents of Erbank under Jajpur’s Bari block staged a protest on Friday against the administration’s attempt to begin construction of a new district jail on 17 acres of government land in their locality. This was the second attempt by the district administration and police to commence construction of the proposed jail at Chhatar Padia. The move could not materialise due to vehement opposition from local residents.
Although a platoon of police personnel was deployed at the site to facilitate the construction work, hundreds of villagers, including women, gathered there and strongly resisted the move soon after work began. The protesters said that the government land at Chhatar Padia serves as the only common space available to the village and is extensively used as a playground, grazing ground for livestock and for various social activities.
“If the government takes over this land, all these activities will come to a halt, causing immense hardship to the villagers,” said local resident Rabi Narayan. He added that the villagers were not opposed to the construction of a new jail but wanted the project to be shifted to another suitable location in the district.
Responding to the protests, Jajpur Town SDPO Prasant Kumar Majhi said that out of the total 20 acres of government land available at the site, three acres had already been allotted to villagers for community use. “The proposed jail will be constructed on the remaining 17 acres. We have also tried to take local residents into confidence. We do not want to use force to carry out the work. Instead, we want to proceed in a cordial and understanding manner,” he said.
The SPDO expressed hope that construction work could begin within the next three to four days. Jajpur collector Ambar Kumar Kar could not be reached for comment despite repeated attempts. Notably, the state government has proposed to construct a district jail at Erbank for Rs 100-crore with a capacity to house around 600 inmates.
