Naveen demands special package for backward districts of Orissa

Alleging neglect of Odisha by the Centre amid bonanza to other states, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday cried injustice and urged Prime Minister Manmmohan Singh to sanction a special package for the backward districts of the state at the earliest.

Patnaik conveyed the Orissa government's feeling in a letter to the Prime Minister.

The fresh move came barely 15 days after the the chief minister wrote a strongly worded letter to the prime minister on November 24 resenting the Centre's refusal to grant special category state status to Odisha.

Quoting media reports, Patnaik said: "We come to know that the Union Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved a special package of Rs 8,750 crore for five years for the development of backward districts of West Bengal."

Odisha, on other hand, got only Rs 340 crore under the Backward Region Grants Fund (BRGF) for 2011-12 for 19 backward districts (About Rs 1700 crore over five years), he said.

This apart, Odisha's proposal for continuation of the special package for KBK (Kalahandi-Bolangir-Koraput) districts in the 12th plan has not been considered so far, Patnaik said.