BJD turns 21; Naveen slams Centre on Foundation Day

ONI Bureau:  The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in Odisha has turned 21 today. To mark the occasion, the party is holding Foundation Day celebrations across the State. While speaking at the main event at the party office in Bhubaneswar, CM Naveen Patnaik targeted the Centre and put 9 questions to allege central negligence.

Naveen invoked late Biju Patnaik’s statement and sought fiscal autonomy so that Odisha Government can decide on the financial matters on its own. “I don’t need any special category status. I don’t need any central assistance. Give me financial autonomy”, he asked the Centre.

Naveen sought to list the loopholes in PMUY, Telecom, Railways and various other projects. He also asked the Centre why Coastal Highways are not being activated yet. He also alleged that farmers are not getting their due on time and the centre remains non-committal on the issue of 33% reservation for women in Parliament and State Assemblies.

“Poor are unable to refill the Ujjwala cylinders because of rising prices. The BSNL network is in a complete mess in Odisha. People are forced to climb the trees to receive better signal in rural areas. Odisha is not getting proper attention in national highways projects. The Khordha-Bolangir railway project remains a history as on today. Centre has stopped the stipends of SC/ST students for the last two years. People suffered due to demonetisation, but banking services did not improve. MCL is getting Rs 20,000 crore from Odisha, but giving us pollution in return. We seek answers to all our questions today. We will continue to fight for our right,” he added.

He also raised the issues of Mahanadi and Polavaram. The CM reiterated his demand to increase the MSP of paddy. With these questions, he mocked the BJP saying, ‘Jawab Maguchhi Odisha’ – the slogan coined by Odisha BJP against the BJD Government’s performance.