Kalahandi (Fast News Odisha) :-(Makund Naik): A memorandum has been issued by the Sarpanch Association demanding that the Kalahandi District Thuamul Rampur block be fully included in the District Mining Institute (DMF) fund and to give power to the Sarpanchs. On Monday, a representative team of the union presented the demand letter to the District Collector through Group Development Officer Dhruv Charan Muduli. However, behind this claim, there is a lot of discussion in the intellectual quarters that the interest of the Sarpanchs is more to achieve ‘right work’ than the development of the region. According to the complaint of the Sarpanch Association, the decision of the Gram Sabha is not being respected as per the 73rd Constitutional Amendment and the Panchayatraj Act. Development of the region is hindered as DMF grants are disinvested out of block by local representatives. The union’s main demand is that the block should be fully integrated into the DMF and that 10 per cent of the grant should be sanctioned directly to the farmers. Union President Balabhadra Majhi, editor Gitanjali Majhi, Dhansingh Majhi, Dhrubkant Majhi, Beni Majhi, Prakash Majhi were present during the presentation of the memorandum. There has been a lot of public dissatisfaction with this demand of the public representatives. It is alleged that these representatives who make big promises during elections are only fighting for their own interests and agenda. Savitri Naik of Doguda village is a shining example of this. He has been declared ‘dead’ in the administrative papers and his allowance has been stopped for the last 4 years. No Sarpanch or Union has gone home to listen to the woes of a living old man crying for basic amenities or to talk to him. The question arises as to how reasonable it is for a union that is silent for the rights of the elderly to threaten the agitation for money and power only.