RAYAGADA: The Dongria Kondhs of the Niyamgiri hills under Parshalli panchayat in Kalyansinghpur block of the district have reached a consensus to field their candidates in the panchayat election.
At a meeting with leaders of 36 villages at Parshalli panchayat office, convener of Niyamgiri Surakhya Samiti (NSS) Ladda Sikaka said Sarpanch and Samiti members along with 11 ward members were selected unanimously. Before filing nomination, Dongrias of Parshalli panchayat selected Paika Sikaka of Lamba village as Sarpanch candidate, Sonari Sikaka of Parshalli village for Samiti member and 11 others for ward member posts. Sikaka said the decision has been taken keeping in mind the unity of Dongria community.
“We will not allow any outside force to inflict cracks on our community. Moreover, the winners of the last election have not paid any attention or taken any concrete steps to address the problems of the area,” he added.
On the other hand, large-scale misappropriation of allocated funds by the previous candidates has hampered development, he said. Meanwhile, Collector Guha Punam Tapas Kumar held a meeting with leaders of different political parties asking them to create awareness on enrolment of voters to help them participate in the democratic process.
Measures regarding model code of conduct were also discussed. Among others, Rayagada SP K Siba Subramani, ADM L K Behera, Sub-Collector Muralidhar Swain and other district-level officials were present.