More signs of change are visible these days in Malkangiri’s Swabhiman Anchal, once considered an impregnable Maoist fortress. In an area, where the ultras ruled the roost and all kinds of developmental activities were in abeyance, grassroots democracy has been taking its first baby steps. At least 21 candidates from this once inaccessible belt, earlier called the “cut-off” area (justifiably), have filed their nominations for the three-tier panchayat elections in the Chitrakonda block.
The fear of Maoists seems to have receded from the minds of the local residents, a majority of them tribals, and now they are willing to choose their representatives democratically to guide their destiny. Of the nine panchayats in Swabhiman Anchal, Dhuliput witnessed the highest number – with five candidates filing nominations for ward member posts, one for samiti member and another for sarpanch.
Similarly, three candidates filed papers for ward member and one for samiti member post in Badpadar panchayat. Candidates also filed nominations for various posts in Jodamaba, Gajalmamudi, Papermetla and Ralegada panchayats. Surprisingly, a villager of Jantri panchayat, which still remains cut-off from the rest of Swabhiman Anchal, filed nomination for sarpanch post.
While the Border Security Force (BSF) is present in eight panchayats of Gajalmamudi, Jodamba, Panasput, Papermetla, Ralegada, Dhuliput, Badpadar and Andrapalli, yet to get security cover is Jantri bordering Andhra Pradesh. Block sources said no nomination was filed from Panasput and Andrapalli panchayats. Panchayat elections will be held in Swabhiman Anchal after more than 10 years.
However, the nominations already filed are a major development and great news for the lovers of democracy. The entire region has been a Maoist hotbed for decades with the ultras preventing people from casting votes and taking part in elections. But the situation began changing after the inauguration of Gurupriya bridge by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in 2018. The bridge connected the area with the district’s mainland after a gap of nearly five decades. It not only led to tremendous improvement in the security scenario but also accelerated developmental activities.
People of the Swabhiman Anchal, with a population of 31,730, are witnessing the fruits of development with new roads being laid, schools and panchayat offices being opened and new mobile towers being erected in their villages to improve connectivity. It has now become far easier to travel to the district headquarter town of Malkangiri and serious patients can be rushed there for treatment within a matter of hours. Earlier, when boats used to be the only means of communication with the mainland, such patients often died for want of timely treatment.
As the people of this region turn up at the polling booths next month, they will be doing so with the hope that elections will not only strengthen grassroots democracy in Swabhiman Anchal, but also open new vistas of development for them.
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