Responding to the two advisory from the State Election Commission (SEC), the State Government on Tuesday has submitted an interim report pertaining to the situation in nine western Odisha districts for initiating poll process in 25 left out urban local bodies (UlBs).
According to official sources, the Urban Development Department on Tuesday in its report said that a report on situation in the troubled western Odisha was yet to be received from the Collectors of nine districts. The Director of Municipal Administration has sought at least seven days' time to give the poll panel a complete report to enable the SEC to take its view on initiating the poll process to the left out UlBs.
The official sources said that the SEC is all set to start the election process during the third week of October after the Puja vacation.
Earlier, the State Election Commissioner Ajit Tripathy had said that in case the State Government's report on the law and order situation on western Odisha did not reach early, the SEC as per the Constitutional authority vested on it would go ahead to conduct the polls in the left out UlBs by third week of October. The election process should be completed in these UlBs by end of November next, Tripathy had added. Tripathy had hinted that since the State Government had already in principle decided to accord Sambalpur and Rourkela Municipalities Corporation status, the SEC would like to exclude the proposed corporation area while deciding to undertake the poll process.
The polls in the 25 UlBs could not be held on September 19 last due to an agitation by lawyers in western Odisha demanding permanent High Court Bench in their region and the poll boycott by all the political parties on the issue.