OAS & ORS Officers go on indefinite mass leave across Odisha protesting attack on Senior Official

Bhubaneswar / Balangir / Chhatrapur, July 2: In a strong show of protest against the recent assault on senior Odisha Administrative Service (OAS) officer Ratnakar Sahu in Bhubaneswar, members of the OAS and Odisha Revenue Service (ORS) associations across multiple districts have gone on indefinite mass leave, severely affecting government functioning.

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The protest began with the Balangir district unit, where all OAS and ORS officers abstained from duty starting today. The association submitted a formal memorandum to the District Collector under the leadership of Pavitra Behera, President of the Balangir OAS Association and Additional District Magistrate. The association has put forward three key demands: Immediate arrest of the accused involved in the attack, Safe and secure working conditions for government officers, Preventive measures to ensure such incidents are not repeated.

As a result of the mass leave, government offices in the district—including block, tehsil, and revenue offices—remain virtually non-functional, causing serious disruptions in public services.

Similar scenes unfolded in Ganjam district, where officers have also joined the indefinite strike. According to OAS District Association President and ADM (General) Pramod Kumar Prusti, ADM (Revenue) Deba Dutta Panda, and Chhatrapur Sub-Collector Sibasis Baral, all OAS and ORS officers in the district are absent from their posts, paralyzing administrative activities across key government offices.

This coordinated state-wide protest by OAS and ORS officers sends a strong message demanding justice for their colleague and urging the state government to take concrete steps to protect civil servants and ensure a safe working environment. The associations have affirmed that the strike will continue until their demands are fully addressed.