Residents of a city in the Samara region have spoken out against merging with Syzran: they don't want to lose their autonomy.

Residents of Oktyabrsky launched a petition against the merger with Syzran. In less than 24 hours, more than 80 people signed the petition. 

"Oktyabrsk... deserves to remain a separate city with its own identity and self-government... We are concerned that our community will lose its autonomy and the ability to independently decide what is best for its residents. The unique needs of our city may be overlooked if decisions are made in a single center," write residents in the petition. 

They say the merger of the cities could harm cultural monuments and local traditions. In Oktyabrsky passes The oldest railway in Russia between Siberia and Central Asia, as well as the longest railway bridge across the Volga. 

Residents hope that the authorities will reconsider the merger decision, taking their opinions into account, and that the city will be able to develop independently. 

Due to the new municipal reform, Russian regions have begun merging not only settlements but also districts. Residents of small settlements there are no longer able to elect their governments. Residents of the Krasnoyarsk Territory have long opposed the merger of districts and municipal reform; they even applied to court, but lost the case. Residents of the Altai Krai also fought the reform, but they also lost the lawsuit, and activist A criminal case has been opened against Aruna Arna. Rural administrations eliminated and in the Irkutsk region. 

In Yakutia, attempts were made to hold a referendum on preserving local elections and deputies, but the attempt was unsuccessful, even though an initiative group for the referendum was registered. Last week, a vote against the merger were made Residents of the Yablonovskoye and Sokhondninskoye rural settlements. Everyone says that decisions about reorganizing districts and settlements are made without the people's knowledge. 

The law on municipal reform was signed by Vladimir Putin, but then surprisedthat village councils in Russia will be liquidated.