It was an unusual scene drawing curious crowds in front of the collectorate in Jagatsinghpur on Saturday.
Some activists of an outfit named Zilla Swasthya Suraksha Abhiyan staged protests, demanding a medical college in the coastal district on Saturday. They took out a rally and staged a demonstration by lying prostrate in front of the collectorate.
During their protest, they lay prostrate and moved like a chain on the road towards the collectorate for their long-pending demand for the establishment of a medical college.
They fumed that even though they had raised the issue several times in the past, the government failed to pay heed to it.
Basudev Sarangi, who took part in the protest lamented, "We have been protesting for a medical college in the district for the last 10 months. The people’s representatives of the ruling party did not listen to our demand. They did not even raise their voice for the medical college.”
Deba Prasad Moharana, a member of the Zilla Swastya Surakhya Abhiyan said, "The population of the district has crossed 14 lakhs. The government says districts having at least 10 lakh population will have a medical college each.”
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“Ours is not a mineral-bearing district and people solely depend on farming. When a patient comes to the district headquarters hospital, he/she is immediately referred to Cuttack. People voted for the ruling party leaders, but they did not raise their voice for a medical college,” he rued.
No comments were received from the concerned authorities.