The Action Committee for IIM (Indian Institute of Management) led by Sapan Mishra formed a human chain on Monday here to protest the move to establish the proposed Odisha IIM at Bhubaneswar instead of Sambalpur.
They also staged dharna in front of the office of the RDC here. A number of organisations apart, students of different colleges took part in the human chain. Political parties, senior leaders, NGO activists and common people were also joined the event.
Since Bhubaneswar has a good number of Central institutions; Sambalpur, the nerve centre of western Odisha, is the next worthy place to get IIM, the agitators said. “This would also help bridge the regional disparity,” opined senior Congress leader Sureswar Mishra.
Protesting against the successive State Government’s “step-motherly attitude” towards this region, the agitators warned that now with IIM being set up at Bhubaneswar in spite of sincere demands from people of all walks of life of the region for its location at Sambalpur, the anger of the people here is sure to increase manifold. They demand that the Government have a second look to the legitimate demand of the people here. Further, the Action Committee decided to hold a Sambalpur Bandh on the issue on Tuesday.