The BJP on Wednesday alleged that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has started playing an Odia language card in a planned way to escape people’s resentment over his Government’s failures during the last 18 years.
“Announcing a slew of decisions for promotion of Odia language and saying to feel proud of being an Odia is very ridiculing on part of the Chief Minister as he couldn’t learn Odia during the last 20 years,” said BJP senior leader Bishwabhushan Harichandan at a Press conference here.
Harichandan said the proposed Heritage Cabinet approved by the State Cabinet would be an inactive entity like the Agriculture Cabinet. The Government has not shown any interest in making provisions of punishment for violators of the Odisha Official language Act.
On the decisions on formation of an Odia language Commission, establishment of libraries at all high schools and holding of an Odia language Conference once in five years and making use of Odia on signage mandatory, Harichandan said, “The Government was talking about all these earlier but has never taken any interest to implement those.”
The Satyabadi Chiar, Odia chairs in the name Mayadhar Manshing and Artaballav Mohanty at Utkal University and Odia Chair at Kolkata University have been closed as the State Government has not provided funds, he further alleged.
“The Government has lost face for scams and corruptions in every sector. Industries and agriculture sectors have been severely neglected.
Schools and colleges have no teachers and hospitals have no doctors. While the Government is facing public ire for its failures, the Chief Minister’s sudden love for Oida is nothing but meant to deceive people,” he remarked.