Slamming the UPA Government at the Centre for discriminating Odisha, Chief Minister and BJD Chief Naveen Patnaik on Saturday warned that people of the State would not tolerate if the Union Government continued to deprive them of their dues.
“The Centre should not construe the provision of assistance to Odisha as mercy. It is the right of the people of the State,” said Patnaik while taking out a Jan Sampark Padayatra in the slum areas under the Ekamra and Bhubaneswar North Assembly Constituency here.
Odisha is still neglected in the Railways sector, while it is not getting any special developmental package to remove poverty and backwardness, he rued. Referring to the report of the Raghuram Rajan Committee, Patnaik alleged that as far as backwardness was concerned, Odisha would not get much benefit as no specific recommendation was made in favour of the State to get the special category status.
Patnaik during his padayatra along with thousands of party workers laid foundation of two low-cost housing projects for the poor people living in the Mahisakhal and Padtharabandh slums under the Rajiv Awas Yojana for slum-free India at a cost of Rs 132 crore.
While 748 housing units would be constructed at Mahisakhala, 1,038 units at Paatharabandh would be set up. Among others, BJD MlAs Bijay Mohanty, Ashok Panda and Bhagirathi Badajena, MP Prasanna Patasani, BMC Mayor Anata Jena and Deputy Mayer Bhratai Singh
accompanied Patnaik during the Padayatra.