Number of villages in Odisha may go up by 4,000
The Hindu
State government is set to declare several hamlets as revenue villages
Odisha’s number of villages is likely to increase by 4,000, as the State government is set to declare several hamlets as revenue villages. The identification of revenue villages assumes significance as new villages will get the benefits of the government’s developmental schemes and programmes upon formal declaration. At the district level, more than 3,500 proposals for creation of new villages are pending. In a letter to all Collectors, State Revenue and Disaster Management Secretary Bishnupada Sethi issued a set of instructions for converting hamlets into revenue villages.
In , the grape capital of India and host of the Simhastha Kumbh Mela every 12 years, environmental concerns over a plan to cut 1,800 trees for the proposed Sadhugram project in the historic Tapovan area have sharpened political fault lines ahead of local body elections. The issue has pitted both Sena factions against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which leads the ruling Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra. While Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister and Shiv Sena chief, and Uddhav Thackeray, chief of the Shiv Sena (UBT), remain political rivals, their parties have found rare common ground in Tapovan, where authorities propose clearing trees across 34 acres to build Sadhugram and a MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) hub, as part of a ₹300-crore infrastructure push linked to the pilgrimage.












