Shah accuses BJD of failure to ensure development in Odisha

BJP president Amit Shah today hit out at the BJD government in Odisha, accusing it of having failed to ensure development in the state despite a Rs 45,000-crore additional allocation by the Centre.

He also criticised the Naveen Patnaik government for blaming the Centre for backwardness in the state and said Odisha was lagging behind despite having all resources because of "misrule and inefficiency" of the BJD dispensation.

Odisha, he said, has remained backward and poor despite being endowed with abundant resources and its people were suffering as the BJD government "failed miserably" to deliver despite being in power for the last 18 years.

"The Centre wants speedy development of Odisha and has already allocated Rs 45,000 crore extra for the state for different programmes. But the Naveen Patnaik government is unable to utilise it properly," Shah told a pubic meeting in this western Odisha town.

Moreover, the NDA government has given a proposal to the 14th Finance Commission for providing Rs 2,11,510 crore to Odisha for its progress, he said.

Virtually sounding the poll bugle for the 2019 general elections, Shah said his party is already in power in 20 states and claimed Karnataka, where Assembly polls are scheduled in May, will soon become 21st BJP-ruled state.

"As the "vikas rath' led by Narendra Modi is surging ahead in the country, Odisha should also become a part of this journey towards speedy development," he said.

Assembly polls in Odisha are due next year along with the Lok Sabha elections.

In a stinging attack on the Patnaik government, Shah said 36 per cent of the villages in the state are still deprived of electricity and 50 per cent of BPL families are yet to get their homes, safe drinking water and other facilities. Fifty lakh houses in the state are still "kutchha", he said.

The BJP chief said despite abundant water resources, only 33 per cent agricultural land in Odisha is irrigated and charged the BJD government with failure to utilise the huge funds provided by the Centre due to lack of sincerity and efficiency.

The education system in the state has collapsed and 40 per cent children are under-nourished and the education system has collapsed, he alleged, adding if the BJD is unable to perform, it should quit.

"If the BJP is voted to power, it will transform Odisha into an advanced state," the party president said.

The Modi government at the Centre is committed to providing electricity to all households under the Soubhagya Yojana by 2021, drinking water to each village and "pucca" houses to all by 2022, Shah said. In addition, 12000 villages will be linked under the Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojana, he said.

He said that the Centre has taken steps for providing Rs 5 lakh health insurance free of cost to 10 crore poor people. It is also all set to increase the minimums support price for paddy by 1.5 times, he said.

Shah hailed the contribution of Odia youths in the development of other states and said, "We want an Odisha where these youths will be able work in their own state for their livelihood instead of going out."