Odisha to keep up demand for special category status in House

The Odisha government will target the Centre on a number of issues, including the demand for special category state status to Odisha, during the budget session of the Odisha Assembly scheduled to begin tomorrow.

The ruling BJD also said that it was ready to face the opposition attack and discuss major issues in the house.

"We will discuss various issues like the demand for special category status to the state, Mahanadi river water tribunal, Polavaram and other important matters during the budget session of the Assembly," Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik told reporters after the BJD legislature party meeting.

The BJD would also raise issues like non-revision of minimum support price (MSP) on paddy and rejection of the demand to create three new railway divisions under the East Coast Railway (ECoR), a senior party leader said.

The opposition Congress and the BJP also said that they were gearing up to corner the BJD government by raising a number of issues during the session.

"We will raise issues affecting the common people. While the state government has failed to provide basic facilities to the people, law and order machinery seems to have collapsed as incidents of rape have increased," Congress Chief Whip Taraprasad Bahinipati said.

State BJP president Basanta Panda said the law and order situation, health services in the rural areas, and condition of farmers and other issues will be raised by the party during the session.

The budget session would begin tomorrow with the address of Governor S C Jamir.

State Finance Minister S B Behera is scheduled to present the annual budget for 2018-19 on March 23, Assembly officials said.

The Assembly session is scheduled to conclude on May 5, they said.