BJD to raise 'step-motherly' attitude of UPA in Budget session

Fresh from its landslide victory in Orissa, the BJD has directed its MPs to highlight the "step-motherly" attitude of the Congress-led UPA during the Budget session of Parliament beginning early July.     

The BJD, which won 14 of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in the state, alleged that the Centre was neglecting Orissa in matters like providing flood assistance, paddy procurement by the FCI and expansion of railway network.     

"We have been asked to raise issues like revision of coal or mineral royalty and negligence in railway expansion," BJD leader in Lok Sabha Arjun Sethi said.     

His Rajya Sabha counterpart Pyari Mohan Mohapatra said, "We will be more critical as the Centre continues to neglect Orissa".     

However, countering the BJD charge, the Congress accused the state government of failing to use central funds for different welfare schemes.      "Instead of blaming the Centre for everything, Orissa government should try to work in coordination with us," Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Bhupinder Singh said.     

Chief Minister Naveen Pattnaik reacted to the charge saying, "During electioneering, Congress leaders had accused the state government of failing to utilise central funds. The issue was raised everywhere, but there were no takers".

Revenue Minister S N Patro said that recently the chief minister wrote a letter to the Centre describing as "cruel joke" its directives to the state government to return Rs 80 crore released as flood assistance.     

"While Bihar was given Rs 1,000 crore as flood assistance last year, Orissa got only Rs 98 crore out of which, the Centre has now asked the state to return Rs 80 crore," Patro claimed.     

BJD MLAs said the state government had launched several welfare schemes to compensate for the Centre's "denial" of benefits to the poor.     

"We are not beggars. The Centre is earning a lot from Orissa in the form of mineral royalty, telecommunications, railway and income tax," BJD chief whip Rabi Narayan Pani said.