Even as the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on his visit to Balangir district inaugurated a slew of projects and laid foundations for new ones on Wednesday, opposition Congress and BJP legislators reminded him of longstanding demands of the district and drew his attention to them.
Balangir Congress MLA Narasingha Mishra demanded implementation of newly-launched Biju Swasthy Kalyan Yojana for all people and raised issues of a High Court Bench at Balangir, reopening of closed Bijayananda Sugar Mill at Deogaon and establishment of Western Odisha Development Council (WODC) headquarters at Balangir. Kantabanji Congress MLA Santosh Singh Saluja demanded setting of a wagon factory at the vacant railway land in Knatabanji and development of Ranipur Jharial which has not received due attention and even the PM’s announcement for its development has remained nonstarter.
Loisinga BJP MLA Mukesh Mahaling urged State Government to implement Centre’s Ayushman Bharat Scheme in Odisha. A group of Congress workers raised slogans on alleged negligence of district on many issues, including early completion of Balangir bypass road, land for Rajendra University and declaration of Balangir as a drought-prone district.