Patnaik writes to Rly minister on Narla wagon repair factory

With opposition Congress calling a bandh in Kalahandi against the reported shifting of the proposed rail wagon repair factory from Narla in Odisha, ChiefMinister Naveen Patnaik today sought confirmation on the matter from Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu.
Patnaik in a letter to Prabhu said, "I hope that recent reports on the shifting of the wagon maintenance workshop from Odisha to Andhra Pradesh are untrue and I would request a line of confirmation from you to assuage the feelings of neglect and hurt which people of the state have suffered."
The Railway Minister in 2013-2014 budget had sanctioned a wagon repair factory at Narla in Kalahandi district but Indian

Railway reportedly decided to shift it to Vishakhapatanam in Andhra Pradesh.
Patnaik in his letter said the state government had already offered two pieces of land measuring 70.02 acres and 44.70 acres near Narla Road Station. It had also assured water availability for the proposed factory.
He said East Coast Railway after the 2013-14 budget announcement had requested the state government for permission to draw water from Tel River for free or at a subsidised rate.

However, the state government in view of benefit to the state granted complete exemption on water tax and this was communicated to ECR immediately in December, 2013.

The chief minister said, meanwhile in the Railway budget of 2015-16 another new wagon maintenance workshop for ECoR at Visakhapatnam was sanctioned but no allocation has been made for the already committed workshop at Kalahandi.
In the 2016-17 Railway budget too there is no fund allocation for the proposed Kalahandi workshop.
On BJD's promise of enhancing irrigation potential of the
state, Patnaik claimed commissioning of mega lift and other efforts have led to the creation of three lakh hectares of additional irrigation.
"We have substantially increased our investment in irrigation and are moving towards the target of one million hectares of capacity addition," the Chief minister said.

Claiming that the effective rate of interest was made one per cent for crop loans to benefit small and medium farmers, he said electrification of 11.5 lakh households including three lakh BPL families, have been achieved so far.
He said the construction of 500 new sub-stations was in full swing.
This apart, Patnaik said his government, in a record time, has set up 100 Odisha Adarsh Vidyalays.
"It is heartening to note that more than 30,000 children from rural areas, some from the backward blocks, have been enrolled in this quality education initiative," he said.
On the proposed medical colleges in the state, Patnaik said despite stoppage of funds by the Centre, "We have gone ahead with the construction of six new medical colleges. I am hopeful that two of them will be functional by next year and the rest by 2018."

He said poor people in the state avail free medicines under Niramaya scheme, a unique distribution scheme of the state.
Besides, Patnaik claimed Odisha leads in providing universal coverage to mothers.
"More than two million women have been assisted under the Mamata Scheme," he said apparently in reference to Prime Minister Modi's concern over mother and child mortality rate in the country.
He also said Odisha leads in implementation of the Forest Rights Act.
"Our IPR 2015 has given further fillip to the industrial scenario in Odisha and we have been ranked very high in the Ease of Doing Business," Patnaik said.

Taking a dig at Patnaik for his statement, senior BJP leader and Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram said "Who prevents you from going for publicity? You do not publicise as you have no achievements."
Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Narasingha Mishra of the Congress also lashed out at the Naveen government accusing it of failing to fulfil its promises of making 35 per cent of each block irrigated.