Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday slammed Cuttack city BJD MlA Debashis Samantray for threatening to snap the water supply to the Paradip Refinery of IOCl. Pradhan said the MlA is spreading falsehood and misguiding people on the IOCl project.
On the plea of acute drinking water shortage for residents of Cuttack city, Samantray had on Sunday announced to spearhead an agitation against the construction of barrages over the Mahanadi in Chhattisgarh and also threatened to stop the water supply to the IOCl.
Pradhan, while speaking at a meeting here on the occasion of the Narendra Modi Government’s completion of three years in office in the presence of Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, said, “The elected representative (Samantray) is out to spread goondaraj in the name of agitation and he is trying to be a new spokesman of the regional party, which is controlled by the bureaucrats.”
Pradhan pointed out that the IOCl draws water from the river near Cuttack following a scrutiny of the Orissa High Court, which had allowed the IOCl to use Mahanadi water under certain conditions while disposing of a PIl in this context. “The IOCl has complied with the conditions set by the High Court,” Pradhan said.
Detailing the contributions made by the IOCl for Cuttack city in lieu of the Mahanadi water, Pradhan said the IOCl has already deposited Rs10 crore for development of the Sishu Bhawan (paediatric hospital), Rs3 crore for city traffic management, five high-tech ambulances with running cost for three years for Rs26 crore, Rs298 crore for dredging of the Mahanadi and removal of the old anicut to increase its water carrying capacity and Rs59 crore for a water treatment plant.