Bhubaneswar, April 6 The Odisha government appointed chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of Special Development Councils (SDCs) in 23 districts on Monday, officials said.
According to a list shared by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), Basistha Nayak has been appointed chairman of the SDC in the Angul district, while Ballav Dharua and Bipin Marandi will head the councils in the Bolangir and Balasore districts, respectively.
Prashanta Kumar Behera, Nauri Singh, and Nilamadhab Patra have been appointed chairpersons of the SDCs in the Deogarh, Dhenkanal, and Ganjam districts, respectively.
In the Boudh district, Damarudhar Kanhar has been appointed chairman.
The government, led by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, has also appointed chairpersons and vice-chairpersons for SDCs in the Bargarh, Gajapati, Jajpur, Jharsuguda, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Keonjhar, Koraput, Malkangiri, Mayurbhanj, Nabarangpur, Nayagarh, Nuapada, Rayagada, Sambalpur, and Sundargarh districts, officials added.
The SDCs were initially conceptualized in nine tribal-populated districts in 2017 and were later expanded to several other districts to protect and conserve tribal art, culture, and heritage, they added.
