Not a brick was laid even eight months after the foundation stone laying ceremony for the proposed medical college and hospital (MCH) by the NTPC in Sundergarh district.
The State Government had signed a MoU with the NTPC on December 13 last year for the MCH. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had laid the foundation stone on January 22 last at Shankara. Among others, bigwigs like MP Dilip Tirkey, former Ministers Mangala Kissan, Sarada Prasad Nayak, Sundargarh MlA Jogesh Singh, Zilla Parishad chief Pitrus Toppo, the Sundargarh Municipality Chairman and Vice-Chairman and NTPC Eastern Zone Director Arvind Kumar were present.
That time the Opposition had alleged it as a publicity stunt of the Chief Minister and his party, since the general elections were not far off. But the BJD had rubbished the charge.
Addressing the public, Patnaik had said that the demand for a medical college was a long standing one of the tribals which was soon going to be fulfilled.
While thanking the NTPC for taking step for the project, the Chief Minister had further said besides Sundargarh, the people from other nearby areas would be benefitted out of the MCH.
NTPC Director A Kumar had said his organization would spend `350 crore for setting up a 100 seated and 500 bedded college and hospital. In first phase, it would start with 400 beds and 50 seats and gradually it would reach the target. Confidently, he had declared that the students would take admission from 2016-17 session.
According to the MoU, the Government would provide 21 acres of free land to the NTPC and 10 seats would be reserved for the children of the displaced families.
But surprisingly though the NTPC is serious about its supper thermal power plant at lephripara block and coal mining at Hemgiri but so far it has not shown any significant sign for setting up the MCH though eight months have elapsed. Even nobody has visited to the spot after January 22 foundation stone laying ceremony. Now the locals here wonder if the allegations of the Opposition then were true.
Meanwhile, NTPC GM Pramod Kumar said the tender process would be completed in Delhi. Once it is finalized, the construction work will start, he said.