A hunger strike, which was scheduled to be staged by locals of Barbil in front of the district Collectorate at Keonjhar on December 6 in protest against the delay in construction of a bypass road in Barbil, has been postponed for six months.
Barbil Civil Society convener Ashok Thakar said there was a meeting of the society with district Collector Ashish Thakre on December 5. The Collector said the district administration is concerned about the need of a Barbil bypass in view of the traffic problem in the Joda-Barbil region, but no progress has been made due to want of clearance for the diversion of the forestland from the Central Government as it is a time-taking process.
He assured the Civil Society that the district administration is taking steps how to get the clearance for the forestland and, meanwhile, trying to complete the ongoing road in the mining region to solve the traffic problem. He requested the society to call off the proposed strike.