Odisha no longer a 'BIMARU' state: Naveen Patnaik

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today claimed that Odisha is no longer a 'BIMARU' state, as it has made satisfactory progress in different sectors.

'BIMARU' is an acronym for Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. It was used to refer to the 'poor economic conditions' of those states.

Patnaik said thing have changed since he took over the reign of the government in 2000 and the state which was earlier laggard has made satisfactory progress in different sectors.

The chief minister said this after releasing a special booklet titled '80-years of Odisha Budget- A Commemorative Volume' here today.

"When Odisha became a state in 1936, the state's annual budget was only Rs 1.77 crore. When we took over the government in year 2000, the budget was Rs 14,000 crore. Today, the budget is Rs 1,20, 028 crore," he said.

"This compilation of this booklet is an effort to present the journey of Odisha in these 80 years through facts, figures and pictorial representation. Odisha is the first state in the country to bring out such a compilation," Patnaik said.

The compilation will be useful for scholars, researches and policy makers, he said.

"Budget is a mirror of the policies of the government. The 80 budgets presented since 1936 portray the commitment of the government to take the state on the path of development. Over the years, Odisha budget has showed innovation to achieve the broader objective of development and welfare for the people of the state," Patnaik said.

The chief minister said the state government has come up with a separate agricultural budget in 2016 with focused attention on the agricultural sector. Over the years, the state has made significant strides in educational, health and infrastructural sector, he said.

Eighty years is a long time and phenomenal journey for the state. "We have achieved milestones during this period," Patnaik said.