Padampur By-Poll: BJD’s Promise Is For Real Or A Political Stunt?

Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the Padampur by-election, BJD has promised district status to the poll-bound subdivision.

Although this is just an ‘election promise’ like what every political party does, now the question arises whether such a promise will ever become an administrative reality or not.

It is also pertinent to be mentioned here that Naveen Patnaik has not promised this as the CM of Odisha. He is reported to have promised this as the BJD chief.

The CM didn’t make an official announcement, but the BJD will surely include the assurance in its poll manifesto.

WHY PADAMPUR ONLY?

Now coming to the most discussed point.   There are many subdivisions where inhabitants have been demanding district tags for long.

Titlagarh of Bolangir has been demanding a district status since the rule Biju Patnaik as CM. In Ganjam district inhabitants of Aska and Bhanjanagar sub-divisions are also demanding district status.

After the promise for Padampur, people from several regions of the state have started raising their separate district demands.

Soro block of Balasore, Banki subdivision of Cuttack, Reamal Tehsil in Deogarh, Dasapalla of Nayagarh district, and many more have raised their demands to become separate districts.

As the sequel to the formation of these new districts, of course, the overhead cost of administrative expenditure will be increased manifolds, which has not been deeply thought about by the BJD leaders.

ODISHA IN THE 1990s

Janata Dal in Orissa under the leadership of vibrant Biju Patnaik won the 1990 General election in a thumping majority.

In its election manifesto, Janata Dal promised the reorganization of districts.

By the beginning of October 1990, the Cabinet decided to the formation of ten new districts in the state for which a grant of rupees five crores was also made.

On further demands from the breadth and length of the state for the creation of more and more districts, the Government, later on, decided to form five more new districts thus making a total of 15 in all.

Considering the recommendations of the 15-year-old reports of the aforesaid District Reorganisation Committee and keeping in view the changes in the contemporary political, geographical, economic, and social sectors and such other relevant factors and above all, the opinion of the people Government decided to form these new districts in the state.

Meanwhile, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Sarat Patnaik and other political parties have termed recent district status promise for Padampur as a political stunt.