Odisha: 40 erosion-hit families of Satabhaya in Kendrapada seek rehabilitation

KENDRAPADA: Members of 40 families of sea erosion hit Satabhaya village staged a demonstration in front of the Kendrapada collectorate on Thursday demanding their rehabilitation at a safer place.
Four years ago, the administration rehabilitated 571 families at Bagapatia, 12 km from the sea but these 40 families were left out. "We are spending sleepless nights as cyclone Sitrang is approaching the coast," said Karunakar Mallick, 65, of Satabhaya.
Large tracts of Satabhaya have been wiped off due to the rising sea levels. "Sea water enters our village every fortnight. Many of us have lost our farmland and at least 500 people their homes in the last decade. We all want to leave the place but don't have anywhere to go," said Bidhubhusan Rout, 34, of Satabhaya.
Satabhaya was once a cluster of seven villages. The Bay of Bengal has already consumed five villages - Gobindapur, Mohanpur, Chintamanipur Badagahiramatha, Kanhupur and Kharikula.
On May 20, the HC bench of Justice Biswajit Mohanty and Justice B P Satapathy directed the Kendrapada district administration to rehabilitate 247 families who had not been given land in the rehabilitation colony. "But the state is yet to rehabilitate all the families," said Dharanidhar Rout, the convener of Satabhaya Sangram Samiti.