Koraput police will conduct a series of community-policing programmes in Kotia to engage tribal residents, address local grievances and strengthen public confidence amid renewed tensions over the Odisha-Andhra Pradesh territorial dispute.
Koraput superintendent of police Rohit Verma said the programmes would involve regular interaction with villagers and welfare activities aimed at improving police-public relations in the disputed region. The initiative follows a confrontation between police personnel from Odisha and Andhra Pradesh during recent elections conducted by Andhra Pradesh in Kotia.
“Community policing is key to strengthening police-public relations. We have planned a series of outreach programmes in Kotia to interact with villagers, understand their concerns and address their grievances,” Verma said. “Our aim is to make people feel secure and build their confidence in the police. Such programmes will be organised regularly in the coming days.”
The outreach will focus on understanding residents’ problems, providing a channel for grievance redress and reinforcing their sense of security, police officials said. The first programme was recently held at Upper Sembi village, where residents received health check-ups and medicines. Clothes and shawls were also distributed during the programme.
Officials said similar programmes would be organised in other villages of Kotia in the coming days. The police have described the effort as a sustained engagement programme rather than a one-time activity, with regular contact intended to improve communication between the administration and residents.
The initiative comes as the Koraput administration increases its outreach in Kotia ahead of the upcoming sarpanch elections in Andhra Pradesh. The region has remained a sensitive administrative and political area because both states claim jurisdiction over parts of it.
The immediate tensions followed the MPTC and ZPTC elections conducted by Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh had initially planned to establish a polling booth at Neradivalsa ahead of the November 5 elections. After objections from Odisha authorities and local representatives, the booth was shifted to Sariki on the Andhra Pradesh side of the border.
Odisha police subsequently prevented their Andhra Pradesh counterparts from entering the disputed territory as part of their polling arrangements. The participation of some Kotia residents in the Andhra Pradesh elections brought the long-running territorial dispute into renewed focus.
The dispute concerns 21 of the 28 villages in Kotia gram panchayat. Andhra Pradesh claims the 21 villages as part of its territory, while Odisha maintains that the entire gram panchayat falls within Koraput district. The competing claims have made public administration, electoral activity and delivery of welfare services particularly sensitive in the area.
The police outreach places health assistance, material support and direct interaction alongside security-related engagement. Its implementation will now depend on whether the programmes continue across different villages and whether residents’ grievances are formally recorded and addressed through the relevant authorities. Koraput police said further programmes would be held in the coming days.
