Tension gripped Baliguali village under the Puri Sadar police limits on Thursday as the villagers dared to violate Section 144 CrPC imposed by the district administration opposing construction of the proposed Government medical college.
Protesting the construction work, a large number of villagers, including women, rushed to the site, and a scuffle erupted between them and police.
Police resorted to lathicharge, in which two villagers sustained serious injuries. They were admitted at the Puri District Headquarters Hospital.
The villagers have been demanding an approach road to their age-old funeral ground and bathing tank which they alleged would be destroyed if the 200-seat medical college comes up.
The Government has acquired 25 acres of land for the purpose. The medical college would come up with joint support of the Central and State Governments.
Earlier also, the villagers had stalled the construction work several times protesting against non-fulfilment of their demands by the administration.
Following the police action on Thursday, the irate villagers resorted to a road blockade along the Puri-Konark road disrupting normal traffic. Senior district administration officials rushed to the spot and managed to pacify the agitators.