Temple construction in disputed Andhra Odisha Border stopped

VIZIANAGARAM: Once again, the disputed Kotia villages issue came to the fore after the attempt of a few persons of Odisha to construct Jagannadha Swamy temple at Nerellavalasa in the disputed region of the Andhra-Odisha Border (AOB) on Friday afternoon. Saluru Mandal Revenue Officer K Srinivasarao, Parvathipuram Deputy Superintendent of Police A Subash went to Nerellavalasa and stopped the unauthorised temple construction. They also sent back the construction workers as well as temple authorities. 

According to the Saluru MRO, though the Supreme Court ordered status quo on permanent constructions in disputed Kotia villages, some people from Odisha have been trying to construct Jagannadha Swamy temple at Nerellavalasa. At least 20 construction workers came to Nerellavalasa with concrete, steel grills and Jagannadha Swamy idol to complete temple construction in three hours. They started construction of the temple on Friday afternoon. 

“Based on the information given by B Prasad of Nerellavalasa, we went to the spot and stopped the construction, according to Supreme Court guidelines. The workers said they were sent by a retired collector from Odisha to construct the temple,” the MRO said. Srinivasarao said, “According to the Supreme Court verdict, nobody has the right to construct permanent constructions in the disputed region. However, people of Odisha violated the verdict. We stopped the temple construction on Friday evening. Based on the complaint given by B Prasad of Nerellavalasa, we submitted a detailed report to Vizianagaram Collector M Hari Jawaharlal.”