BERHAMPUR: ustrated over the continued neglect of their long-pending demand for road connectivity, hundreds of villagers residing along the Andhra Pradesh border staged a blockade on the Ranchi-Vijayawada corridor for nearly four hours near Kereda in Rayagada district on Thursday.
The agitators, mostly from Anija and nearby villages under Kereda panchayat in Rayagada Sadar block, alleged that they have been deprived of an all-weather road despite approaching the district administration repeatedly over the past decade. The villagers demanded blacktopping of the road from Emphalabalasa village to the Andhra Pradesh border through Anija, as well as another stretch connecting Anija to Iskapalem (Bophalua) in the neighbouring state.
Former sarpanch Minarao Himirika said the villagers had been pursuing the demand for nearly 10 years but received little beyond repeated assurances. A survey was reportedly conducted by the Rural Development (RD) department, but no construction work has begun.
“We submitted another written representation to the Rayagada collector on October 7, warning that villagers would launch an agitation if the roads were not constructed. We have repeatedly been assured that surveys are being conducted, but nothing has materialised. It appears that the government is neglecting our villages,” Himirika alleged.
He further claimed that the Andhra Pradesh administration had earlier initiated steps to construct an approximately 2.8-km road from Puduguwalsa to Ampuluwalsa. However, the Rayagada administration reportedly stopped the construction within Odisha’s territory, assuring the villagers that the state would construct a proper road on its side. Despite the assurance, the proposed road has remained on paper, claimed Himirika.
The villagers alleged that even an earlier attempt to cut through a hill to facilitate road construction was halted. They said the absence of proper connectivity had compounded their difficulties in accessing essential services.
Due to the road blockade, hundreds of vehicles were stranded on both sides of the Ranchi-Vijayawada corridor. In the evening, additional block development officer (ABDO) of Rayagada Kalicharan Nayak along with police reached the protest site and held discussion with the agitators. The blockade was lifted after the ABDO assured the villagers that the local road would be repaired immediately.
Nayak said a tender for the road project has already been floated. Once the tender is opened, construction work will begin by January next year.
