BJD Leader Slams Odisha Govt Over Odia Asmita, Asks BJP To Spell Out Strategy On Mahanadi Water, Polavaram Issues

Bhubaneswar: Hitting out at the Mohan Majhi government for claiming that Odisha failed to develop during 24 years of Naveen Patnaik’s rule, BJD MLA Arun Sahoo on Tuesday asked BJP to spell out its plans to resolve contentious issues with neighbouring states.

The senior BJD leader and former Minister told reporters that he raised several issues during the debate on the appropriation bill in the Assembly to highlight the achievements made by the previous government in the state.

Stating that Odisha was reeling under heavy debt burden when BJD came to power, Sahoo said while the sate’s budget size was around Rs 11,000 crore, debt was to the tune of a whopping Rs 18,000 crore.

It was the BJD government which transformed an ailing economy devastated by the super cyclone of 1999 into a revenue surplus state, he said, adding that the state made rapid strides in agriculture to become the fourth largesse rice producer.

While only 25 lakh hectare areas in the state were irrigated in 2000, the size of irrigated land has gone up to 50 lakh hectare, he said.

Stating that most of the states and even the Central government are hit hard by high volume of debts, the BJD leader said Odisha’s dependance on debts has been reduced to negligible level because of the hard work done by the previous government.

The debt component in Odisha stood at only Rs 96,000 crore against the budget size of Rs 2.55 lakh crore, Sahoo said, adding that international agencies as well as the Centre have praised Odisha for its robust economy.

Taking a dig at the BJP government for making tall claims about upholding Odia Asmita, the BJD leader asked the Mohan Majhi government to spell out its plans to settle contentious issues with the neighbouring states.

The BJP government should make its strategies to settle Mahanadi river water issue with Chhattisgarh, Polavaram and Kotia disputes with Andhra Pradesh and Subarnarekha river issue with Jharkhand, Sahoo said.

Stressing that BJD and others are also dedicated to the cause of Odia Asmita, the former Minister said BJP should refrain from blowing trumpet over the issue.