RTI activists stage dharna, seek repair of temples 

BALANGIR: Local RTI activists on Wednesday staged protest demanding repair and proper management of Samaleswari, Patneswari and Gopalji temples in Balangir town.Staging dharna in front of the Gandhi statue here, RTI activists Prashant Mahakur, Sambhu Satpathy and Bikash Saa alleged that the administration is neglecting the temples despite sanction of funds for maintenance of the shrines.

Prashant said after the ceiling of Samleswari temple collapsed last year, the government sanctioned `10 lakh for repair work in 2022. “The administration claims that the amount was spent on temple repair. But I visited the shrine recently and found that it was still in a dilapidated condition,” he alleged.

The agitators claimed that all the temples are in a deplorable condition due to lack of maintenance. “If the administration continues to neglect the shrines, we will intensify our agitation,” they threatened.On the day, Balangir tehsildar Amrutlal Behera met the agitating RTI activists and assured to look into their demand.