Koraput: Dasarathi Burudi was rendered homeless after the government began construction of the Upper Kolab Multipurpose Project in the district 30 years ago.

Dasarathi and thousands of others from nearby villages found a home after they were rehabilitated at a camp in Kotpad block. Having lived at Camp-6 for three decades, even renaming it Baikunthpur, the residents have now urged the government to recognise it as a revenue village.

"Though we have been living here for the past 30 years, we are still identified as 'camp residents' and feel discriminated because of it. There has always been a conflict with nearby villagers as they refer to us refugees," said Dasarathi.

"As a result, we decided to shed the tag of 'camp residents' and gave a name to our village," he said.

Originally residents of Khiloput village, which was submerged in the Kolab reservoir in the 1980s, 88 families were rehabilitated at the camp about 70km from here.

Several elected panchayat representatives, including Kotpad MLA Chandra Sekhar Majhi, who attended the camp's name ceremony recently last week, supported the villagers' demand.

"It's time that the district administration identified the camp as a revenue village so that the residents can avail themselves of the benefits meant for them," said Sanjit Patnaik, secretary of SOVA, a voluntary organisation helping displaced people fight for their rights.

"The government should also prepare a time-bound long-term plan for overall development of the displaced villagers," he added.

The lack of development is evident all around the camp, which was electrified only recently following years-long demand. The displaced villagers still do not have access to clean, potable water as the ground water level of the area is much below average.

The villagers, who were mostly dependant on agriculture before they were displaced, have now turned to manual labour, travelling to either Kotpad (5km away) or Jeypore (50km away) for livelihood. A displaced villager said the land they were provided was fallow, forcing them to abandon their traditional livelihood and turn to menial jobs for survival.

Majhi also backed the demand of Dasarathi and fellow residents for recognition of the camp as a revenue village.

"I will raise the issue during the upcoming session of the Assembly and ensure that all required steps are taken so that the camp gets the status of a village," he said.

A district administration official said the villagers first needed to pass a resolution at the gram sabha of Batasana panchayat, under which it falls, for changing the camp's name.

According to records, over 50,770 people from 149 villages were either partially or fully affected during the construction of the Upper Kolab Multipurpose Project.

More than 3,000 families from 57 villages were displaced by the project, only 424 of whom opted to live at the four rehabilitation camps in Kotpad block.

Similarly, 96 families of Camp-5 and 120 families of Camp-7 have renamed their areas as Santoshpur and Purusotampur villages respectively.