Cuttack: Senior BJD leader and Cuttack MP Bhartruhari Mahtab has expressed his displeasure over the decision of the state government on setting up the proposed Netaji Bus Terminal at Khan Nagar in the city.
Talking to mediapersons on Tuesday, Mahtab said the government decided the location of the bus terminal without consulting the people’s representatives. “I have the information that the decision has been taken at the chamber of the chief secretary,” he added.
He further said instead of visiting the proposed location, the officials concerned finalised the location on the basis of the Google Map data.
“It would have been better had the government consulted the local residents and people’s representative and taken their suggestion before finalising the location which is geographically not suitable,” Mahtab pointed out.
Refuting the allegations of his party colleague, Rajya Sabha member Subash Singh said that the state government has decided to set up the proposed bus terminal after a series of meetings with the local residents and representatives. “The decision of the state government to set up the proposed bus terminal in the name of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose is a pride for the people of Cuttack,” he maintained.
The BJP had earlier come down heavily on the state government for finalising the location in Khan Nagar.
In a press briefing on January 23, Cuttack district president of the party Prakash Behera had said the state government in 2013 had decided to construct a new bus terminal on 43 acre of land at Balikuda-Gopalpur on the outskirts of Cuttack city. Of the total area, 13 acre has already been encroached by some government officers and land mafia.
Claiming that the state government has changed the location to protect the encroachers, he said the government has not yet clarified on shifting of the new bus terminal. “The proposed project to be constructed on 12 acre at Khan Nagar will not only prove inadequate for a well-equipped bus terminal but also create acute traffic problem in the Millennium city,” Behera said.
Also Read: Naveen Lays Foundation Stone Of Netaji Bus Terminal In Odisha’s Cuttack
