Cuttack, April 13: Adarsh Nagar Abasik Sangha (ANBS), which represents residents of Sector 11 in Abhinaba Bidanasi Katak — the satellite township being developed by Cuttack Development Authority (CDA) — has filed a PIL before Orissa High Court alleging inordinate delay in allotment of required land for establishment of the police station which had been notified for the area.
The petition has been tagged with other PILs on Cuttack’s civic problems that are under adjudication, but the high court has not yet taken it up for hearing.
ANBS secretary Kailash Chandra Panda (71) said the state home department had issued a notification for establishment of a second police station in Abhinaba Bidanasi Katak two years ago. The police commissioner’s office had subsequently identified a land, measuring 8240sqft in Sector 11, for it. A sum of Rs 76.26 lakh was also allotted for the police station. But construction of the police station building has not been possible as the CDA is yet to provide the land earmarked for it.
The PIL seeks intervention of the high court for immediate delivery of the possession of the earmarked plot for utilisation of funds sanctioned for construction of the police station building.
According to the petition, the CDA had submitted a master plan for developing residential and commercial areas at Sector 11 of the Abhinaba Bidanasi Katak project area. Acting on it, the state revenue department had accorded sanction for lease of 35.95 acres of government land, stipulating use of 13.47 acres for public utility purposes like road, playground, school, bus stand, hospital, community centre, police station and health dispensary.
“But the CDA, till today, does not have any plan or budget for such infrastructure as per their master plan,” the petition alleged.
Records annexed to the petition indicated that the state home department had on February 28, 2009 notified for establishment of a second police station in the Abhinaba Bidanasi Katak project area by carving out some areas from the jurisdiction of the police stations at Markat Nagar police station (the one presently functioning for the entire area) and Bidanasi.
The police commissioner had in a letter to Cuttack’s collector on December 4, 2009 informed that a suitable patch of land measuring 8420sqft at Sector 11 had been identified by the deputy police commissioner of Cuttack for construction of police station building and residential quarter for its staff.
Subsequently, on September 18, 2010 in a letter to the vice-chairman of the CDA, the deputy commissioner of police said: “funds amounting to Rs 80 lakh have been provided for construction of police station building,” adding “the police station has not been functional due to non-availability of its own building.”
