No move to create sub-divisions: Patro

Noisy scenes were witnessed during the question hour in the Assembly on Wednesday with the Congress members staging a walkout not satisfied with the reply given by Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Surya Narayan Patro on creation of new sub-divisions in the State.

Replying to a question from Santosh Singh Saluja (Cong), the Minister said new sub-divisions are created as per Odisha Revenue Administration (Unit) Act-1963 and Odisha Act-22 of 1963. Stating that there is no proposal for carving out new sub-divisions at present, Patro said demands from different parts of the State will be taken into consideration if a decision is taken in this regard.

He said no decision has been taken to convert Kantabanji tahasil in Balangir district into a new sub-division. Members cutting across party lines demanded new sub-divisions in their Assembly constituencies.

Even several ruling party members demanded that new sub-divisions should be created in their constituencies keeping in mind administrative requirements.

Without giving any commitment while replying to supplementaries, the Minister said sub-divisions will be created basing on administrative requirements.

Former minister and BJD member Padmanabha Behera suggested that a decision should be taken on the demands of the people for creation of new sub-divisions after discussion with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

The decision should be posed to the Reorganisation Commission after that.

He demanded that Binka tahasil in Sonepur constituency should be declared as a new sub-division.

Raising a supplementary, Karendra Majhi (BJP) said there is a demand for bifurcation of Baliguda sub-division which is very big and G Udaygiri tahasil should be converted into a new sub-division.

The Minister said the State Government has received a demand for creation of G Udaygiri sub-division, which is under its consideration. However, no decision has been taken, he said.