A violent dispute erupted on Saturday between two groups over forestlands in villages Kapsavata, Sariyavta and Laktipakhna under Burja panchayat in Umarkote block of Nabarangpur district. People of three villages under Kusumguda Bono Surokhya Committee, namely, Siriliguda, Kusumguda and Sarabhata set fire to a house in Kapsavata village and destroyed more than 100 acres of maize crop cultivated in village Kapsavata, Sariyavta and Laktipakhna.

About 100 tribal families (Kandh) of Kapsavta, Sariyavta and Loktipakhna have been living and farming in the forest for more than 50 years. However, since 2005, the Kusumguda Bono Surokhya Committee has been demanding the removal of the settlements of these three villages, and this unpleasant situation is happening every year. Every year during the rainy season, hundreds of acres of maize crop of these three villages are being destroyed by the Bono Surokhya committee, but the administration has taken no steps to solve the problem.

As a result, on Saturday, hundreds of people of three villages under the Kusumguda Bono Surokhya Committee destroyed the maize crop of the rival villagers. Along with this, some houses of Kapsavatta village were also set on fire. The agitators also blocked the road by keeping trees on it to stop arrival of police and civil administrative officials. However, the police administration removed the trees and reached the affected villages and warned the agitators not to destroy the crops. But the agitators didn't heed the police warning and destroyed crops.

After the incident, villagers of Kapsavata, Sariyavta and Loktipakhna are worried as to how to repay the crop loan.