Bhubaneswar, May 13: The state administration today lifted the curfew in Bhadrak, 35 days after its imposition.

A senior district official said the curfew was lifted after the district headquarter town returned to normality. However, prohibitory orders under Section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code to prevent the unlawful assembly of more than five persons would remain in force. "We will continue with regular frisking, checking and blocking despite the curfew being lifted," said a senior police officer.

Bhadrak superintendent of police Anup Kumar Sahu told The Telegraph: "The curfew was lifted as the situation has become normal. No untoward incident has been reported in the past few weeks." The administration, on April 7, imposed a curfew in the wake of violence between groups after objectionable social media remarks.

Properties worth around Rs 100 crore were destroyed in the violence and more than 400 shops and business establishments were damaged. Puruna Bazaar and Chandan Bazaar localities were the worst-hit.

The police have registered 103 cases for rioting, arson and violence and arrested more than 250 persons. Around 500 accused are still absconding.

The government has asked the district administration to compensate 443 residents, who were affected by the violence. The amount would range between Rs 15,000 and Rs 2 lakh.

During his visit to the strife-torn town on April 12, chief minister Naveen Patnaik had asked the administration to assess the damage and announced that compensation would be paid to the victims after the assessment.