The assistant director of census, Sujit Kumar Pradhan, who also serves as the nodal officer for Gajapati district, visited Manikpatna, a border village situated in the Rayagada block of Gajapati district, on Saturday. The visit was aimed at reviewing the ongoing first-phase census operations in the border villages of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
Discussion with Villagers and Officials
During his visit, Pradhan engaged in discussions with villagers, enumerators, and supervisors regarding the census process. This visit holds particular significance as a group of enumerators from Andhra Pradesh had visited the bordering village under Gangabada panchayat three days earlier. They marked house numbers, claiming that the village belonged to Andhra Pradesh, and allegedly removed the house numbers that had been marked by Odisha enumerators.
Response from Odisha Officials
In response, enumerators from Gajapati district revisited the village and re-marked the house numbers, replacing those put up by the Andhra Pradesh team. This action followed a visit by the sub-collector of Paralakhemundi, Anup Panda, and other officials who assessed the situation. Falguni Majhi, additional district magistrate of Gajapati, confirmed that their enumerators had again visited the border village and marked the house numbers. He also noted that police patrolling in the village was intensified after the incident.
Sukant Pradhan, tehsildar of Rayagada, stated that the enumerators have already completed the house number marking in the border village and that enumerators from the neighboring state did not return. The village comprises around 70 households, and house enumeration was conducted as part of the first phase of the census. While the fieldwork in the village has been completed, the data will be uploaded to the portal. Census operations are also progressing smoothly in other areas, particularly in other border villages.
Call for Permanent Solution
Haribandhu Karjee, sarpanch of Gangabad panchayat, has urged the government to find a permanent solution to the border disputes in the district, especially in his panchayat. The incident highlights the ongoing tensions along the Odisha-Andhra Pradesh border.
