A show-cause notice was issued to an Odisha government junior engineer for laughing in front of senior officials during a flood review meeting.
However, Mihir Panda, a junior engineer from Baliapal block in Balasore district, has staged a dharna in front of the block office.
According to reports, the flood has wreaked havoc on the Baliapal block of the Balasore district.
On Tuesday, DRDA Project Director Rabindra Kumar Sahu convened a review meeting in the absence of Panda, in which all officials from the block were present.
Later, another review meeting was held in the cabin of BDO. Panda arrived late for the meeting and guffawed, prompting Sahu to issue him a show-cause notice. Panda, however, did not receive the notice and sat in protest on Wednesday morning.
“I saw only 40-50 people receiving cooked food in the Choudhurykuda village under Madhupura panchayat.” During the meeting, however, I received word from the block administration that 850 people had been provided with cooked food. “As a result, I laughed spontaneously,” Panda explained.
I was asked to leave the meeting hall, and then I received a letter accusing me of bringing alcohol to the meeting. Panda continued.
Prasanta Patnaik