By Augustine Singh
K. Nuagam: Survivors of Kandhamal violence in 2007 and 2008 held a district level assembly at Kanjamendi, Odisha, on March 10.
During the meeting, many survivors shared that they are yet to receive government compensation and access to legal justice as per the Supreme Court order in 2016, said Rini Digal, a participant.
It is still disheartening to learn that a good number of survivors also has lost their dear ones, houses, and belongings, but not enlisted on the government list, she added.
Hence their appeal before the government was to make fresh enumeration and provide adequate compensation, said Bipra Charan Nayak, a local leader.
The purpose of the meeting was to press for justice for affected people, Nayak said.
Some of the representatives from the blocks said, “There are cases of killing, looting and destroying of houses in our villages, our names are not there in the government list.”
Some other leaders opined, “The Supreme Court has ordered to reopen 315 court cases, but we doubt about the success, because of the past failures in our legal support system.”
Most of the representatives expressed, “The declared compensation for destroyed houses not at all adequate.”
The Kandhamal violence that lasted for nearly four months in 2008 claimed more than 100 lives and rendered more than 50,000 people homeless.