Chhatrapur: Hundreds of residents of four villages under Aryapalli panchayat launched a mass agitation, locking both the main gates of Gopalpur Port to protest lack of action over worsening sea erosion that they fear could submerge their ancestral land.
The protesters Monday demanded immediate measures to check coastal erosion and address other long-pending issues concerning the area. After repeated appeals and discussions with Gopalpur Port authorities failed to produce a solution, residents had approached the district administration.
However, no action was taken, according to the villagers. The protesters included the Aryapalli sarpanch, members of the Ganjam District Fishermen Forum and Ganjam District Seafood Association, as well as school students. They said they were protesting to protect their ancestral land from sea erosion.
Protesters also locked a school during the agitation and warned that four more schools would be shut if their demands were not addressed. The agitators submitted a five-point charter of demands, including construction of a stone guard wall along the coast, repair of steps at the Gopalpur Port fishery jetty, adequate water and lighting facilities at the jetty, asphalting of the road connecting the Marine police station with the fishery jetty, and permanent employment for local unemployed youth.
Ganjam District Collector V. Keerthi Vasan, Chhatrapur Sub-Collector Sibasish Baral and other government officials visited the site to assess the situation. Officials from the Irrigation department and the Chhatrapur tehsil administration held talks with the protesters, but the discussions ended without a resolution.
Meanwhile, residents of 27 villages have warned of another agitation Tuesday, including a plan to lock the main gate of the IREL facility. Among those who participated in Monday’s demonstration were Aryapalli Sarpanch Trilochan Behera, Ganjam District Fishermen Forum President M. Gumali and General Secretary B. Bhimsen, Ganjam District Seafood Association General Secretary M. Dillip, BJP Mandal President N. Dinabandhu, and BJP Youth Vice President P. Ram Babu, along with A. Venkatesh, K. Dasarathi, E. Narasimha, B. Seema, M. Gobinda, Ch. Ananta, Krushna Chandra Kar, Sudam Das and Bhimsen Das.
