SRIKAKULAM: Days after digging up trenches at Milagam village on the border with Andhra Pradesh to stop the movement of people to their side, Odisha officials have blocked another road by laying heaps of soil at Gopalapuram village of Patapatnam mandal on Thursday.
A couple of days back, the Odisha officials dug up trenches at Milagam village but they later filled them to restore movement of people following objections raised by the Srikakulam district administration after a pregnant woman was forced to be carried on a makeshift bamboo stretcher to reach a waiting 108 ambulance on the Odisha side.
However, on Thursday, Odisha officials blocked the road between Gopalpuram of Patapatnam mandal and Parlakhemundi of Odisha by laying heaps of soil across the road. People of Patapatnam and adjacent villages depend on Parlakhemundi (headquarter town of Gajapati district) of Odisha state to market their agricultural and allied produce.
They also depend on the adjacent Odisha town mostly for medical emergencies. In case of emergency, people of Gopalapuram have to travel more than three kilometres to reach Parlakhemundi.
Incidentally, Gopalapuram is neither in the red zone nor containment zone. After four COVID-19 cases were reported from Patapatnam, Odisha officials had blocked several roads.
When contacted by The New Indian Express, Palakonda RDO G Kumar confirmed the unauthorised blocking of roads from the neighbouring state and said that they would speak to Odisha officials about it. "There are several villages on the AP-Odisha border where villagers depend on the other state to meet various needs. If the practice continues, people will face serious problems," he said.