\The Upakula Rajpath Kriyanustahn Committee (URKC), a Balikuda-based civic body, on Wednesday demonstrated in front of the Collector's office here opposing a new alignment plan of a proposed coastal highway project as per which some areas originally coming under its ambit have been excluded.
The agitators threatened to intensify their stir in the coming days if their demands were not met and later submitted a petition to the district Collector seeking his intervention.
The URKC sympathizers and Balikuda people complained that the proposed coastal highway had been designed first to touch the Balikuda region in the year 2015. The highway was to reach Badabali- Mankadakhi under Balikuda block in Jagatsinghpur district and move through Panchayats such as Mala, Anantapur, Marichapur, Baramundali, Goda, Gadaharishpur, Padmapur and Ambiki before connecting Paradip.
But sadly, in the modified coastal highway plan, these Panchayats have been excluded and the highway would now pass through Naugaon block touching Deriki, Machhagaon, Ambasala, Borikena and then proceed towards Paradip through Erasama block.
The coastal highway would boost the agricultural and fishery products of seaside villages besides supporting the local tourism and serving as a protective block for the villages vulnerable to onslaught of cyclones and floods. After its completion, it would also reduce the traffic load of National Highway-16.
The Balikuda people complained that as per the earlier plan as many as 15 Panchayats comprising around 120 villages from Balikuda block were to get connected with the proposed coastal highway. These villages are nearly 5-10 km from the sea. However, according to the modified alignment plan, villages which are around 25 km from sea are included while the villages nearer to sea were excluded, the URKC activists alleged.
“We have approached the PM and Union Government departments connected with the coastal highway project and CM Naveen Patnaik, seeking their intervention. Meanwhile, we have started village level meetings to gather support for our agitation. If the Government ignores our claims, we would intensify our agitation,” warned the URKC leaders.