Even as the ruling BJD is busy holding its Swabhiman Samabesh in Delhi on Wednesday demanding Special Category status for the State, the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) on Tuesday staged a demonstration near the Raj Bhavan and blasted Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s “baseless” allegations of Central neglect to the State.
Addressing party supporters, PCC president Jayadev Jena said, “Naveen Patnaik has made a novel strategy by organising a Swabhiman Samabesh to cover up his glaring inefficiency in spending Central funds. The Samabesh is also a tactic to divert the attention of the common people from the multi-crore chit fund scams in the State.”
Due to the inefficiency of the BJD Government an amount of `7,001.46 crore in 2009-10, `6,423.15 crore in 2010-11 and `8,439.58 crore in 2011-12 remained unspent and subsequently returned to the Union Government, which had provided the funds to State under various Central schemes, Jena alleged.
leader of Opposition in the Assembly Bhupinder Singh said that though the UPA Government has been providing 35 kg of rice to BPl, AAY and APl category people bearing a subsidy of `16.19 per kg since April 2002, the State Government is distributing only 25 kg of rice.
Blaming the Patnaik Government for its large-scale corruption in the MNERGS, mines and in other sectors, Opposition Chief Whip in the Assembly Prasad Harichandan said, “Odisha has earned a dubious distinction of being the first State in the country to face CBI inquiry into misutilisation and misappropriation of MNREGS funds in six districts. He also dared the State Government to recommend for CBI probe for the remaining 24 districts.
later, the Congress leaders submitted a memorandum to the Governor seeking a CBI inquiry into the misutilisation and misappropriation of Central funds as well as into the chit fund scams, review of implementation of various economic policies and programmes
in tribal areas by the Governor as mandated under Scheduled-V of the Constitution of India.