Gadwal: BJP Jogulamba Gadwal district president S Ramachandra Reddy has demanded that government should appoint a district Panchayat officer (DPO) immediately.

Addressing a press conference at the party office in Ajiya town on Wednesday, he said that the DPO was suspended 15 days ago by the ACB on corruption charges, leaving the district without a key official. As a result, development works across the 240 gram panchayats have come to a halt.

He pointed out that the tenure of the Gram Panchayat governing bodies ended 14 months ago, and since then, the responsibilities have been handed over to panchayat secretaries. However, without a DPO, the secretaries are unable to approve and process development-related bills.

He expressed concern that due to the lack of a DPO, sanitation works and drinking water supply have been severely affected in many villages. With the summer season approaching, the drinking water crisis is worsening across the district.

Due to the absence of a district officer, mandal officials and panchayat secretaries are unable to clear bills, leading to stalled development activities. Ramachandra Reddy urged the district Collector to take immediate action and appoint a new DPO at the earliest to resolve the pressing issues in rural areas.

The meeting was attended by State Kisan Morcha executive member Medikonda Bhim Sen Rao, town president Kampati Bhagat Reddy, leaders KR Ashok, Laxman Goud, Laxmana Achari, Raghu, and others.