V K Pandian Raises Poll Pitch For ‘Jodi Sakha’ With Development Plank In Odisha’s Koraput

Jeypore: A day after BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik set the poll pitch for BJD, 5T and Nabin Odisha chairman V K Pandian on Thursday carried forward his vision for ‘developed state by 2036’ with his first rally in Koraput, which will going to polls in the first-phase elections in Odisha on May 13.

Addressing a public meeting at Semiliguda, Pandian launched a veiled attack on Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who is also BJP MP candidate from Sambalpur, over his reservations to Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY). “A Union Minister, who is known for making only tall claims, has been dubbing BSKY as a failed scheme. It is a epoch-making initiative of the CM because of which poor people are getting the best treatment in big hospitals at Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, and even Raipur and Visakhapatnam. Our CM believes in doing more work and speaking less,” he asserted.

The government health card provides health insurance coverage for medical expenses (up to Rs 5 lakh for families and up to Rs 10 lakh for women) incurred for treatment in hospitals and health centres.

Dharmendra has been criticising the BJD government, alleging the state of healthcare in Odisha was deplorable and limited to mere publicity.

Pandian further said that the CM considers the 4.5 crore people of Odisha as his family and has been working to uplift every section of the society. “The monthly pension under Madhu Babu Pension Yojana (MBPY) has been increased to Rs 1,000 for the 36.75 lakh beneficiaries. Minimum wages have also been increased by Rs 100. The CM draws strength from the smiling faces of the people of the state,” he said.

He spoke about Mission Shakti, “an initiative close to the CM’s heart”, to empower women of the state and interest-free loans of up to Rs 10 lakh for members of 70 self-help groups (SHGs) under the programme.

Pandian also listed out the demands of the people of Pottangi constituency, which includes Damanjodi, Pottangi block, Nandapur block, Semiliguda block and 3 gram panchayats (Litiguda, Dumuripadar and Mathalput) of Koraput block and funds sanctioned for different projects, including renovation and development of tourists sites and temples in the region. “In Pottangi alone, 45,000 farmers have benefitted from the KALIA scheme. Similarly, digital boards are being used for teaching students in 50 high school, which were include under 5T transformation programme, under this block,” he said.

To keep the ongoing development works on track, the BJD leader exhorted the gathering to vote for Jodi Sakha, Koraput MP candidate Kausalaya Hikaka and Pottangi MLA nominee Prafulla Pangi.

Pandian later addressed another meeting at Laxmipur under Koraput LS constituency.