Cardboard cutout of South Orissa based on RDC? Updates...

Updates:

1. I tried to find center of gravity based on paper cutout, though its a rough estimation the center point fell around Lanjigarh - Kalyansingpur region (exactly in the boder between Kalahandi and Rayagada near Devigiri).

2. Its not like I negotiate to have Wagon Factory at Kalahandi for a HC branch which does not suit all the regions. Having visited many time I feel the pain of people of Malkangiri, Koraput, Nabarangpur, Nuapada etc while visiting Berhampur. Honestly we have more buses from KK region (read undivided Koraput & Kalahandi), even from sub-divisonal level, to Bhubaneswar/Cuttack than to Berhampur. Same is the rail service. Which is better connected Cuttack or Berhampur for KK region? It takes another couple of hours to visit Cuttack from Berhampur. Night journey is more comforatble to Cuttack than to Berhampur. from KK region. Why then additional branch?

3. Kalahandi, Nuapada are Boudh are part of South Orissa since RDC was made. They became part of Western Orissa by protesting to be part of Sambalpur University instead of Berhampur University due to connectitvity. There is nothing lik Western Orissa RDC, its North RDC located in Sambalpur. WODC includes part of undivided Kandhamal too. I will not deny Kalahandi is part of Western Orissa but it is part of South Orissa too as official data show. Bank or World Bank classify Kalahandi as South Orissa, so the RDC. When SOSA is demanding HC branch, it is mentioning 10 disitcts of South Orissa, which are they?

4. Which major project Kalahandi grab in the name of KBK? Indeed idea of KBK was generated primarily keeping undivided Kalahandi in mind. Stavation death and Kalahandi Syndrome are known facts of past history. Is there any Kandhamal, Koraput, Balangir or Berhampur Syndrome defined by social worker?

5.  Some part of Kandhamal (such as Phulbani) and Gajapati will be nearer to Berhampur than Bhawanipatna/Rayagada, they may not like the idea, but most backward region in Kandhamal, such as Tumudibandh, Baliguda, Kotagarh, etc region will be much closer to say Bhawanipatna or Rayagada or any other possible central location.

6. I agree Berhampur is an old city and must get attention to become one of the leading city in Orissa. Indeed I compare like Rourkela. However, for this to make one does not need to make the other backward region to remain in the dark or make them uncomfortable.

7. RDC is not for employment generation in the region. People in KK regions are suffering for RDC,  progress is much slower, state capital is far way to monitor things directly. Samablpur is also not near compare to the distance between Berhampur and Bhubaneswar. 

8. If some of you think social parameter shows Kalahandi is developed put it out of KBK. I explained Abhisekh in a comment in Tathya, I had read this HDI taken in 2005 a year ago, it does not reflect every thing. We can not say Khurdha and Mayurbhanj are equally developed based on this data and Jagatsingpur is backward compared to Mayurbhanj. Due to lack of primary health facilities in 2007 hundreds people died in Thuamul Rampur, in 2009 it was again in Lanjigarh, how if it was a developed district? Below map shows some of the official data on tribal population and literacy rate.

9. Instead of negotiating and bursting emotionally for our dear city better to understand the situation in a broad manner which benefit this backward locations and their people. HC Branch and RDC will not make Berhampur a great city either.

For those who are interested to make cardboard cutout of South Orissa here is the map.

I never said Bhawanipatna is the center except the following:

• From Bouda in North to Motu in South, central place for South Orissa could be Thuamul Rampur.

• From Khallikote in East to Kundai (Nabarangpur) in West, central place for South Orissa could be Lanjigarh/Muniguda.

• From Parlikhemunid in South East to Beltikri (Nuapada) in North West, central place for SO could be Lanjigarh.

• Major town close to these central locations will be Bhawanipatna. 

(NOTE: I do not have problem if central location comes any place in the district of Kandhamal or Rayagada) 

Additional information:

Out of 10 districts SIX have border (Koraput & Boudh have just touched) with Kalahandi, perhaps Kalahandi is only district in South Orissa having direct border with maximum number of districts. Only Malkangiri, Ganjam and Gajapati do not have any border contact with Kalahandi in South Orissa.


Ganjam has border with only TWO districts whereas SEVEN do not have any border contact with Ganjam in South Orissa.


South Orissa's RDC should be at a more appropriate location
Merinews, July 25, 2010
Based on Revenue Division (or RDC), classification of South Orissa (SO) consists of 10 districts including Ganjam, Gajapati, Kandhamal, Boudh, Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, Kalahandi and Nuapada. 

ORISSA CHIEF Minister had written a letter on November 8, 2007, to then High Court Chief Justice suggesting that circuit or permanent benches were required in Sambalpur and Berhampur for Western and South Orissa respectively.

Based on Revenue Division (or RDC) Classification, South Orissa (SO) consists of 10 districts including Ganjam, Gajapati, Kandhamal, Boudh, Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, Kalahandi and Nuapada.

From Bouda in North to Motu in South, central place for South Orissa could be Thuamul Rampur. From Khallikote in East to Kundai (Nabarangpur) in West, central place for SO could be
Lanjigarh/Muniguda.

From Parlikhemunid in South East to Beltikri (Nuapada) in North West, central place for SO could be Lanjigarh.

Major town close to these central locations will be Bhawanipatna.

When Ganjam was carved out of South Orissa, Bhawanipatna also had an edge over Rayagada. On the other hand, if Kalahandi, Boudh and Nuapada are counted as part of Western Orissa based on University and WODC classification and not by administration (RDC) and Ganjam is counted as South Orissa then Rayagada will be suitable location in rest of South Orissa.

Even if one thinks for a branch or regional station in Rayagda, Bhawanipatna or Koraput for South Orissa, Ganjam district is still very well connected to Bhubaneswar or Cuttack in best possible way in the state by road (golden quadrangle NH) and railways (main line). Most of the locations in Ganajm are closer to Bhubaneswar or Cuttack and could be reached faster than let us say to Rayagada/Bhawanipatna, of course Koraput is very far from Ganjam.

When such thing occurs, perhaps people in Malkangir, Nuapada, Boudh or Nabarangpur may suffer more while visiting Rayagada or Bhawanipatna than those people from Ganajm while visiting Cuttack. Place like Khallikote, Bhanjanagar etc in Ganjam are even much closer to Cuttack. It does not justify cause of separate high court (HC) branch in Ganjam like the case of Keonjhar, Angul etc. Otherwise in every 170 to 200 km Orissa will need to have a HC branch and regional station. On the other side, Kalahandi, Rayagada, Koraput, Nuapada, Nabarangpur etc are not closer to either Cuttack or Bhubaneswar. Even Sambalpur is far away from these locations compared to the distance between Bhubaneswar/Cuttack and Berhampur.

Ganjam is very close to rest of costal district in the state with a tribal population of three per cent, whereas rest of South Orissa districts (including Gajapati) has 30 to 50 per cent tribal except Boudh which has 13 per cent. Literacy rate of Ganjam is much higher than rest of South Orissa districts and close to Balasore. Other districts in South Orissa are more prone to Maoists than Ganjam. Having a large border with Bay of Bengal and based on its geographical location, Ganjam can very well be classified as coastal Orissa (or Eastern Orissa) along with other districts like Balasore to Puri, instead of Ganjam being part of South Orissa.

Earlier Ganjam was classified as South Orissa due to strong political influence and innocence of rest of South Orissa was taken granted. Parala Maharaj, Biju babu and Naveen babu come from the region and have continuously favoured Berhampur time to time over other backward districts in South Orissa.
 

South Orissa will be more appropriate for Gajapati, Kandhamal, Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangir, Nabarangpur, Kalahandi, Nuapada and Boudh, all of them are socially backward compared to Ganjam.
 

There should not be a complaint if on the lines of Rourkela, Berhampur should see development but this should not happen in the name of South Orissa or as a regional station for whole South Orissa.
 

In the name of South Orissa, politically Behrampur has enjoyed lots of governmental attention such as RDC, educational institutions (it is the most favoured destination in the state after capital region in terms of state government institutions) etc while others are continuing to suffer. Now this exploitation must stop somewhere.
 

RDC for North in Orissa is located in Sambalpur for the districts of Bargarh, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, Balangir, Sonepur, Deogarh, Sundergarh, Keonjhar, Angul and Dhenkanal, the central location for all these districts more or less comes in the Sambalpur district. 

Similarly RDC for Central (Eastern or Coastal) in Orissa is located in Bhubaneswar for the districts of Mayurbhanj, Balesore, Bhadrak, Jagatisingpur, Kendrapada, Jajpur, Cuttack, Puri, Khordha and Nyaagarh, the central location for all these districts could be Jajpur (part of undivided Cuttack), but if Ganjam becomes part of it, central place will be Bhubaneswar/ Cuttack and in that case area wise three revenue divisions will be similar.
 

The political depravity and favouritism should be stopped by Orissa government. The RDC located in Berhampur is unable to monitor work in Kalahandi, Nuapada, Boudh, Nabarangpur etc and lots of Central government grants are returning back. Kalahandi failed to spend MGNREGA money last year. The progress is much slower than expected.
 

The RDC for South Orissa should rather be relocated in central location of South Orissa and so should the probable location of high court branch in South Orissa be evaluated.