Odisha Chief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik on Sunday announced that Padampur town would be given the status of the district by the end of the year. “I announced about Padampur district last December. This must be done within this year," said the Chief Minister.

The Chief Minister assured this to the inhabitants of Padampur while addressing the people in a meeting during his visit to Padampur Assembly in Bargarh district last year. He also visited Paikmal and Jharbandh regions in the Bargarh district.

The locals of Padampur have been demanding a separate district for a long. Moreover, during the byelection in December last year, the district status for Padampur was also a major poll issue. The Padampur subdivision comprises 6 blocks, 6 tahasils, and 2 NACs and has a population of around 6.7 lakhs.

Naveen Patnaik also said he believed in action, not in words. As promised during last year's bypoll election, he must keep his promise within the prescribed time frame. Padampur will be recognized as the new district of Odisha. Moreover, the Paikmal Primary Health Centre has been turned into Community Health Centre.

Addressing the people of Paikamal, he said he had sanctioned 64 crore rupees for the development of their region. For the first time in Odisha's history, money was sanctioned based on people's proposals for the development of every ward, every panchayat, and every NAC. He believed in the development of the region.

Apart from the announcement, Patnaik also inaugurated various welfare projects in that area. He disbursed rupees 1.23 crore for financial assistance to Self Help Groups (SHGs). He also said that many women were present in today's meeting and doing well. The amount was being given to them as financial support. He hoped that with this money, they would become promising entrepreneurs.