Bhubaneswar: Responding to fresh border tensions, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari on Sunday asserted that Kotia rightfully belongs to Odisha.
Addressing media personnel, the Minister stated that the Odisha government is actively monitoring the situation and stands fully prepared to thwart any provocative manoeuvres or attempts by the neighbouring state to conduct local body elections in the disputed area. “Odisha is the mother of Kotia, and Andhra should remain like an aunt,” Pujari remarked.
The Minister’s remarks follow a notification issued by Andhra Pradesh announcing local body polls across three villages within Kotia gram panchayat — Phagunasineri, Ganjeipadar, and Phatusineri. Andhra Pradesh officials have sought to absorb these villages, located in Koraput district’s Pottangi block, into three separate panchayats under Salur block of Parvathipuram Manyam district. The notification outlines elections for Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) and Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituency (ZPTC) seats scheduled for November 3, followed by three-phase sarpanch elections running from late November through early December. With the nomination window for MPTC and ZPTC seats closing on October 18, the move has reignited the long-standing inter-state border row.
To counter these administrative incursions, Pujari confirmed that the state government has instructed the Southern Divisional Revenue Commissioner to closely track cross-border movements and monitor daily developments.
Noting that Andhra Pradesh routinely stirs up border controversies ahead of its electoral cycles to generate political momentum, he reassured the public that Odisha remains resolute in applying legal and administrative safeguards anchored by Supreme Court status-quo directives. He expressed confidence that local residents stand firmly with Odisha, emphasising that the state administration has successfully expanded essential infrastructure, welfare benefits, and development programme across Kotia households over the past couple of years.
He further noted that, opposition parties, in a healthy democracy, have a constructive role to play alongside the government in resolving regional issues. He recalled instances where legislative members, including Congress MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati, visited the region, and stressed that safeguarding Odisha’s territorial integrity should transcend partisan politics.
On Saturday, Congress leaders, including Pottangi MLA and Odisha Legislative Party leader Ramachandra Kadam, visited the area and demanded immediate intervention. Kadam accused the state government of double standards that had allowed Andhra Pradesh to assert administrative claims, while declaring that neither the people of Kotia nor the Congress party would tolerate interference. “Kotia is an integral part of Odisha and will remain so,” he added.
