Malda, Sept. 25 -- A dispute over mouza boundaries has allegedly resulted in around 25 families of Kalobangra village under Haro Hajra area of Chanchal-II block being left out of the first phase of the census survey. Despite submitting applications through the government portal, residents claim that enumerators assigned to conduct the door-to-door survey did not visit their homes to verify and record their details.

The affected families have approached the Chanchal Sub-Divisional Officer and the Block Development Officer, demanding an immediate survey and inclusion of their households in the census records.

According to the residents, the affected houses are scattered across three different mouzas. Eleven families are located in Mohammadpur mouza, seven in Gorakhpur and four in Bhakri. Residents said the total number of affected families is around 25. They alleged that confusion over the jurisdiction of the three mouzas resulted in enumerators passing responsibility from one another.

As a result, none of the officials allegedly visited the households to collect or verify the required information. "We applied through the government portal, but no enumerator came to our homes for verification.

The officials responsible for the three mouzas kept directing us to one another," alleged a resident, Abdul Khalek.

With the first phase of the Census exercise already over, the families are worried that their households may remain excluded from the official records. They have submitted written complaints to the SDO and BDO, seeking immediate intervention and a fresh survey of the affected households. The incident has triggered concern in the area, with residents questioning how families could be excluded from a Census exercise because of administrative confusion over mouza boundaries. Malda North BJP MP Khagen Murmu said he would take up the matter with the block administration.

"I will ask the BDO to look into why these families were not surveyed. If the incident occurred due to negligence on the part of any Census worker, action should be taken against the person responsible," Murmu said.

The residents have urged the administration to conduct the survey at the earliest and ensure that all affected households are properly included in the Census records.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.