Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik made a visit to the district and attended several programmes, including unveiling of a life-size statue of former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam in Chandipur beach and inauguration of beach festivals at Dagara and Talseri.
The statue of black granite has been installed in the beach with the initiative of Beach Festival Committee under PPP mode with `11 lakh including about `6 lakh of local MlA JP Dash’s lAD fund. The statue has been built by the local artisans of Baleswar.
Unveiling the statue, Patnaik said, “I am delighted to unveil the statue of Dr Kalam.”
The height, including pedestal of the statue is 14 feet. The statue’s height is 6 feet. The festival committee had a dream to instal the statue and today it is a reality, said Chandipur beach festival committee secretary Bismoy Mohanty.
State Tourism Minister Ashok Panda, who accompanied the Chief Minister, said, “More funds would be pumped in for development of the Chandipur beach.”
Patnaik flew to Dagara beach in a chopper from Chandipur. Besides laying foundation of a circuit house, he inaugurated the beach festival there.
“Infrastructure development is being made for the Dagara beach. With the development of the beach, there would be socio-economic growth in the region,” Patnaik said addressing a big gathering of over 30,000 people.
Attending the function, Baleswar MP RK Jena said, “This is one of the finest beaches not only in Odisha but in India. The potential is huge yet it has not been tapped .The beach’s serene atmosphere is unique with huge congregation of red crabs. Efforts are being made for development of the beach, which would enhance employment opportunities for the locals. The State Government has sanctioned `1.66 crore for initial development work of the Dagara beach.”
From Dagara beach Patnaik flew to Bhograi and inaugurated the Talseri beach festival and too addressed a gathering. He unveiled a statue of former MlA late Parsuram Panigrahi and attended a function of a school.