THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF ODISHA IN 2024

2024 was a roller coaster ride for the districts in Odisha. The New Indian Express takes a look at what made the headlines across regions in the state this year

- EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

Rourkela: Sundargarh hogged the limelight for all the wrong reasons in 2024 as the industrial district gained notoriety for a number of heinous crimes against women and girls this year.

Shockwaves spread in the state after a rape accused, out on bail, brutally murdered the minor victim on December 7. The accused youth dismembered the girl's body into six pieces and burnt her face before dumping the body parts in the Brahmani river. Both the accused and victim belonged to Sundargarh district.

On December 17, a minor girl of Uditnagar was picked up from near the Rourkela railway station and taken to a house in Bisra block where she was gang-raped.

In a fallout of an illicit relationship, five members of a nomadic family including three women were murdered in cold blood by a rival group at Karamdihi within Sadar police limits on October 29.

On September 21, two minor girls of Jharkhand were kidnapped from the busy Bisra Chowk area of Rourkela and gang-raped by three culprits. The next day, another minor girl was kidnapped from outside a pub in the posh Civil Township area and gang-raped by five persons.

Ganjam: 2024 was an eventful year for Ganjam as the southern district, considered as the fortress of BJD, was breached by the BJP in the general elections amid widespread incidents of poll violence.