Cuttack:
Two years after the anti-Christian riots in Orissa's Kandhamal district claimed 38 lives and saw nearly 6000 houses torched, top Christian leaders have expressed their utter disappointment with the state government's non-serious approach to the issues of rehabilitation and compensation.
On Monday, Reverend Raphael Cheenath, the Archbishop of Bhubaneswar-Cuttack, said the state government, despite tall promises, had failed thousands of riot-victims including 35 women who suffered sexual assaults.
"There is tremendous fear and the matter is not fully settled now. With regards to compensation, I would like to say many types of damages have taken place...people lost their household articles...some of them have lost their family members who were killed. But never has the state government consulted the victims. They have said, 'Take Rs 20,000, 50,000...if you won't take it, forget about it.' What about the institutions, the churches and training centers where lakhs of rupees of damage has taken place?" the Archbishop said.
He added that Church bodies have helped rebuild about 2,500 of the 6000 houses damaged or destroyed during the riots while the rest remained half-built or un-built.
Alleging about 4,000 people belonging to 20 villages were still unable to return to their houses due to fear, the archbishop demanded adequate protection for the victims and witnesses during trial of cases.