Bhubaneswar: Hitting out at the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government over dwindling forest cover in Odisha, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday asked Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to explain as to how Rs 5,000 crore meant for afforestation was utilised.
Addressing a press meet in Bhubaneswar, state BJP spokesperson Sajjan Sharma said that the state government claims to have spent Rs 5,000 crore in the last ten years on afforestation.
However, people of the state, who are reeling under unprecedented heatwave conditions amid unusually high temperature, are looking for traces of forests despite tall claims being made by the BJD government about afforestation programme, he said.
Coming down heavily on the state government, the senior BJP leader said that the Chief Minister must come out with an explanation on how Rs 5,000 crore meant for afforestation was utilised.
“People of the state have every right to as to where forests have been created and where the money was used. The Chief Minister must give an explanation,” Sharma said.
Mounting a scathing attack on the Naveen government over water crisis in the state, the senior BJP leader said the ruling BJD was once staging agitation over Mahanadi river water.
However, not only Mahanadi, but also other major rivers, canals and water bodies are now drying up alarmingly due to inaction on the part of the state government, he claimed.
Stating that the central government had provided funds or 75 projects under Amrit Sarovar scheme, Sharma said the state government should tell the people as to how the money was utilised.
