Bhawanipatna: BJP National president Amit Shah on Wednesday said his party would replace the BJD government in Odisha in the forthcoming Assembly elections in 2019.
“There has been a spree of development across the country under the leadership of prime minister Narendra Modi. However, the development is going at a snail’s pace in Odisha,” Shah said while addressing a huge gathering at the Lal Bahadul Shastri Stadium here.
The BJP leader, who arrived here on a two-day visit to Odisha, came down heavily on chief minister Naveen Patnaik. “In spite of being in power for 18 years in a row, the state government has been able to provide electricity to only 36 percent of the total households in the state,” he said and assured the people that his party, through its innovative ‘Soubhagya Yojana’, would provide cent percent electricity to all households in Odisha before 2021.
Claiming that the Odisha government has grossly failed in the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana as there are over 50 lakh people still living in thatched houses, Shah said his party would provide pucca house and drinking water to each family before 2022.
He also cited several instances justifying the failure of the state government.
“Till date, there is no all-weather road in 12,000 villages. Even the fair weather roads are not connected either to the state or National Highway. The plight of the education is dismal as there is only one teacher in 7 percent of Primary Schools in the state while there is acute shortage of teachers in 66 percent of schools. What is more shocking is the fact that in its 18-year rule, the state government has been able to provide of 33 percent irrigation facilities in the state,” he pointed out.
He assured the people that if his party comes to power in the state next year, it would provide of 24-hour power supply and clean drinking water to each village.
Among others, Union ministers Jual Oram and Dharmendra Pradhan also spoke.
Earlier in the day, police arrested five Congress activists for showing black flags to Shah while he was on the way to the stadium.
After addressing the meeting, Shah left for Balangir and had a meeting with the party office-bearers including Dharmendra Pradhan, Jual Oram, Odisha Pravari Arun Singh, sitting MLA, former MLA and district president.
After having a night halt, Shah is scheduled toaddress party’s youth wing members on the next day before leaving for New Delhi.
