BJP Asks Why Odisha Ranks Low In Development Index Despite 25 Years Of Stable BJD Govt

Bhubaneswar: Hitting out at the BJD government over its tall claims about transformation in Odisha, BJP on Wednesday claimed that the ranking of the state in various development index nosedived during Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s rule.

Addressing a press meet in Bhubaneswar, Odisha BJP spokesman Anil Biswal claimed that healthcare and education systems and infrastructure completely derailed in the state despite having a stable government of BJD for the last 25 years.

Accusing the Naveen Patnaik government of taking the state backward, Biswal said according to the SDG-India Index 2020-21 of NITI Aayog, Odisha scored only 61 standing at a rank of 19 among 28 states.

Similarly, State Health Index (2019-20) released by NITI Aayog in 2019-20 shows that Odisha stood 14th among the 19 large states, he said.

As per the Social Progress Index (SPI) released by the Institute for Competitiveness and Social Progress Imperative in 2022, Odisha stood 32nd among the 36 states/UTs, scoring only 48.19 out of 100, the BJP leader said.

Referring to crime scenario, Biswal said crime rate per one lakh women population reached an alarming 112.9%, making Odisha the state with the third highest number of crimes against women in the country in 2020.

What is even more concerning is that this trend continued for two more years thereafter in 2021 and 2022 when Odisha was among the top five states with the highest rate of crimes against women, he said.

Odisha recorded 14,853 cases of assault against women with intent to outrage their modesty, which was shamefully the highest in the country, the BJP leader said.

While Odisha was ranked 29th in ease of doing business rankings in India, the state ranked 6th out of eight coastal states in export prepared index, he claimed.