BJP leader and former Union Minister Dilip Ray has demanded Municipal Corporation status for the Rourkela Municipality. The State Government should immediately declare a decision in this regard after it has decided to form Sambalpur Municipal Corporation, he said in a statement.
Expressing his happiness over corporation status for Sambalpur, Ray said the demand for a corporation tag for Rourkela is justified from the angle of population as this can be done taking the areas of Jagada, Jhirpani, south Rourkela, Kalunga-Vedavyas-Kumarmunda, Brahmani Tarang into its jurisdiction.
The population of the area is 5 lakh plus, which is much more than the stipulated 3 lakh for granting corporation status for Rourkela, he said, alleging that though the demanded has been made for several years, a weak political leadership has failed to meet the expectation of the people of the Steel City.
In 2010, the demand was raised for corporation status for Rourkela, and in 2011 the Rourkela Municipality passed a resolution seeking corporation status for the urban body.