The BJP on Saturday responded to the allegation of Odisha youths being deprived of getting jobs in the IOCl’s Paradip Oil Refinery after the party’s senior leader Bijay Mohapatra expressed concern over the issue in a letter to Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minster Dharmenda Pradhan in this regard on Friday.
The BJP claimed that that due importance has been given to people of Odisha in all executive and contractual posts and transportation work after Pradhan took charge as the Minister.
“Pradhan has taken steps to facilitate more jobs for Odia youths in the Paradip refinery by changing norms for the IOCl is a all India organisation,” said party State spokesperson Golak Mohapatra.
He stated that out of total 529 executive posts, 90 posts are being held by Odia youths. To create employment opportunities in the IOCl, campus selection has been arranged in the NIT, Rourkela and IIT, Bhubaneswar.
While recruitments have made against 346 non-executive posts, 166 Odia youths have got jobs, accounting for 48 per cent of the total. Out of 5,123 employees working on contractual basis, 4,475 are Odias, which is 87 per cent of the total, Mohapatra said.
The saffron party leader said 145 local truckers have been engaged in transportation of diesel, petrol and white oil while loading of a hundred trucks is done daily. Truck owners from Odisha have been engaged in daily transportation of 20 trucks of black oil.
Besides, Odisha truckers have been engaged in petcoke and sulphur transportation while 200 to 250 trucks of petcoke and 20 trucks of sulphur loading registered daily.
About 150 vehicles have been engaged in transport of lPG selected though a tender process as per the order of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), Mohapatra said.
Stating that Bijay Mohapatra might have brought allegations out of his ignorance, he said all rehabilitation and resettlement works are being done as per guidelines of the State Government and IOCl has taken important steps for development of the local area.
Notably, Bijay Mohapatra had written to Minister Pradhan expressing concern that Odia youths have not got due job share in the refinery.
Right from direct employment to indirect ones like contract work, labour and transportation of goods are being awarded to people and agencies outside Odisha, he had mentioned in the letter.
In response to local MlA and Minister Dr Damodar Rout’s allegations that people from Bihar and Gujarat being given jobs in the refinery, Golak Mohapatra asked Rout to clarify as to whether his family members are benefiting out of the Central project or not. He also wanted to know why a non-Odia person is holding an important post in the Chief Minister’s Office when recruitments of non-Odia people in the Central project is being opposed by the State Government.