The Utkal Sammilani has taken a stand against the demand for a separate Kosal State. At a Press conference here on Monday, Sammilani State president Dr Guru Prasad Mohanty said Odisha is a very small State and large numbers of Odias are staying in different parts of Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh.
Odisha would be made much smaller if a separate Kosal State is formed. He further said that while some people are demanding a separate Kosal State, the common mass in western Odisha are not in its favour.
The State would not be bifurcated in the larger interests of the Odias, said another Utkal Sammilani leader Dillip Dashsharma. He said it is a misconception that western Odisha is being neglected by the Government, referring to the recent appointment of GM College Professor Gangadhar Mishra as the Director of Higher Education Department, as an example.
leaders of western Odisha have become Chief Minister and many more have been in the State Ministry at senior level, he added. Among others, Sammilani general secretary Adwaita Kumar Patra, Bibhuti Mishra and Usa Mohanty were present at the Press meet.