Phailin-hit people stage road blockade in Puri

Puri: Hundreds of Phailin-hit people staging road blockade in Brahmagiri block of Puri district demanding allotment of houses under the Orissa Disaster Recovery Project (ODRP), were detained by police today.

The agitators alleged that despite the World Bank granting Rs 920 crore for construction of houses under the ODRP scheme for 30,000 families affected by cyclone Phailin, over 14,000 families of Krushnaprasad and Brahmagiri blocks in Puri district are yet to receive the allotted houses.

Earlier on September 15, during an agitation in Bhubaneswar, Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi, Development Commissioner R Balakrishnan, Odisha State Disaster Mitigation Authority (OSDMA) authorities and Puri Collector Arvind Agarwal had held a meeting with agitators and assured them of allotment of houses within seven days, informed sources.

However, even after three months, the government is yet to fulfill its promise so the villagers have taken to streets threatening to continue their agitation till their demands are not met.

"Some Phailin-affected people of Brahmagiri, Krushnaprasad and Sadar areas of Puri had a few demands that are being looked after by the district administration and a decision will be taken at a higher-level" said Puri Sadar SDPO, Sushil Kumar Mishra.