Uproar in Orissa Assembly over appointment of Western Orissa development council members

Courtesy:-Orissadairy

Though normal businesses were conducted in the House on Thursday, it experienced noisy scenes for some time as the Opposition Congress Members created disruptions demanding ouster of expert members of Western Odisha Development Council. The uproar forced the Speaker to adjourn the House for 30 minutes from 11.30 am to 12 noon.

The issue of status of present expert members kept the House hot in the question hour as the both the Opposition Congress and the BJP members expressed their dissatisfaction over reply of Planning and Coordination Minister Ananga Udaya Singh Deo on a question of Santosh Singh Saluja. Sri Saluja had wanted to know whether the nominated expert members of WODC required qualifications or not. He had also asked whether works were being allotted on the recommendation of such member or not.

Other Opposition Members including Subal Sahu, Jayanarayan Mishra, Anup Sai and Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo alleged that the expert members who have been nominated to the WODC have no expertise. Rather, the State Government has nominated BJD’s failed members to the posts. They said as per the WODC guidelines the expert members should have expertise in prescribed fields and should belong to concerned districts for which WODC works.

Alleging that some of the expert members have been nominated from outside the WODC area, the Opposition members said the outsiders are taking huge amount as TA and DA causing economic burden to the WODC.

In his reply, as the Minister said that one of the Members is staying in Delhi and he might be given TA and DA, most of the Congress Members rushed to the well of the House and started slogans demanding ouster of the ‘illegally’ nominated members of the WODC.

Issue of Lawyers agitation was also raised in the House. Members cutting across party lines opined that the protest of the Bar Council and the Bar Associations was justified. “If evening courts work for two hour in the evening, it would pose problems for all including lawyers and witnesses. While lawyers would not get time to meet their clients, the witnesses would face security problems especially in Maoist dominated areas,” they said and demanded the State Government should find some alternative to dispose of the cases.

An adjournment motion on ‘spread of cholera causing human tolls and the State Government has failed to contain the situation’ was also debated in the House. Slamming that the Government had no concern for the people suffering and dying in the Cholera in almost all the districts of the State, the Opposition members raised issues like lack of road communication, scarcity of drinking water and vacancies of doctors’ posts are not being full filled by the Government.

On the other hand, the Health Minister informed that a total of 132 people had died in KBK districts and 60 in other districts. “Government had taken timely steps to contain the health situation of KBK district arose out of spreading of diarrhea,” the Minister said.

In the afternoon session Members participated in a discussion on Odisha Municipal Amendment bill placed three days ego.

Malaria cases rise in Balangir

By Sudeep Ku Guru, Courtesy :-The Telegraph

The number of malaria cases reported at the district headquarters hospital here has risen following last week’s sustained rainfall. Choked drains in several places of the town have become the breeding ground for mosquitoes. The biological vector control method has also come to a halt due to want of funds.

Sources said that there was waterlogging in several areas of the town, especially the low lying areas following last week’s rain. Small puddles of water and choked drains in front of houses provided ideal conditions for mosquitoes to breed. Hospital sources said there was an unusual rise in malaria cases during the last few days, but there were no reports of deaths due to the disease.

Swagat Sahu, a local resident, said that three members of his family got malaria soon after the rain stopped and one had to be admitted to the district headquarters hospital.

The use of gambusia fish as part of the biological vector control method has been stopped due to want of funds. A variety of fish called gambusia, also known as mosquitofish, had been pressed into the job in the malaria-prone areas of Balangir district to stop further breeding of mosquitoes back in 2004. It had worked well.

Chief district medical officer (CDMO) of Balangir Purna Chandra Sahu admitted that there was a rise in malaria cases in the hospitals over the last few days. “Yes, there is a rise in Malaria cases over the last few days. Unfortunately the biological vector control method to control the breeding of mosquitoes has stopped. We were initially very enthusiastic about the new method. But, gradually, we realised that there was no special fund provision from the government to maintain a gambusia hatchery. As a result, the tanks dried up and the fish died,” Sahu said.

There were 15 tanks for gambusia in the district. “If a handful of fish is released into ponds or breeding places of mosquitoes like drains, then the larva of mosquitoes will vanish within hours as the fishes eat them,’’ said Sahu.

Kalikesh urges PM to include KBK in development plans for Maoist-hit areas

Courtesy:- DailyPioneer

BJD MP from Balangir Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo has approached Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take a call on the KBK region. He said that unless the Prime Minister intervenes in the matter, these areas would continue to rot.

Singh Deo said the eight most backward districts of the world in Odisha’s KBK region need inclusion in Unified Action Plan for Naxal-Affected Regions (UAPNAR), which is a Central Government initiative to tackle the Maoist menace through development programmes.

Singh Deo said the PM is aware that people of KBK are exposed to extremely adverse human development indices and are one of the most deprived communities. He requested the PM to intervene for the inclusion of the KBK region in the UAPNAR so that they are delivered with a semblance of justice.

Where is the Bonus, Mr Minister?

Courtesy:-BizOdisha

An open letter to the Agriculture minister, Govt of Odisha

You have made a statement that the farmers are getting Rs 50 bonus on a quintal paddy. Sadly, that is a blatant falsehood and nothing else.

To

Shri Dr. Damodar Rout Ji
Hon’ble Agriculture, Cooperation, Fisheries and Animal Resource Development Minister
Government of Odisha

Dear Sir,

Pranam !

You are a seasoned politician; a senior member of the present cabinet holding agriculture and cooperation portfolio; and also you claim to be an active farmer. You are the most active member of the present cabinet on various media and public communication platforms. Having all these traits, the farming community expects from you a reflection of the true status of the agriculture sector.

But, I am constrained to allege that, on many occasions, you have belied the trust reposed on you by the farmers. Your statement made on Friday that a bonus of Rs 50 is being paid now, over and above the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of paddy, adds another leaf to that growing list falsehood.

You are grossly wrong in reporting that the farmers are being paid a bonus of Rs 50 on every sell of a quintal of paddy. The farmers are not getting any bonus this year at all and the net sell proceed from a quintal of paddy remains exactly the same as last year.

In addition to the MSP of Rs 950 per quintal, farmers were also getting a bonus of Rs 50 last year. The MSP for this year has been increased to Rs 1,000 per quintal. However, the government is providing no bonus this year. Thus, the effective price that a farmer gets by selling a quintal of paddy still remains Rs 1,000.

Your statement is like an insult to injuries to the farming community which is grappling with increasing adversities. If you have made the statement after ascertaining true facts, then your department and your government has failed to convey the decision - to pay Rs 50 per quintal bonus - to your procuring officers. That shows the incompetence of you and your government. But, if you are not aware of the true facts and still preferred to make an announcement that Rs 50 per quintal of bonus is being paid, then that is no less than brute treachery towards the public in general and farming community in particular.

You definitely owe us an explanation on this guff.

With regards

Bimal Prasad Pandia

The writer is a farmer and development researcher. Please send your comments and suggestions at media@bizodisha.com or bimalpandia@gmail.com

Tel valley civilization: Riverside kingdom traced in copper plates

By:-Riyan Ramanath V (Courtesy:-Indian Express)

BALANGIR: While Gumagad, the first century BC military strategic hub, speaks volumes of a flourishing kingdom in the Tel river valley, a copper plate recently found at Kapsila village in Balangir district hints at existence of several kingdoms on either side of the valley.

Historians, who recently evinced interest in exploring more facts about the valley civilisation, opined that further excavation can unravel the history buried under the earth. This copper plate was interestingly found near the archaeological site of Kharligad near Gumagad.

Utkal University Archaeology Prof Sadasiva Pradhan, who got the copper plate from a Brahmin, said it contains information regarding the civilisation. He, however, had sent it to eminent epigraphist Sadananda Agrawal for deciphering.

According to Agrawal, as per the information on the copper plate, the civilisation dates back to the 8th century AD.

“The Udayapur area, the capital of Rashtrakuta kings who ruled the valley, is still dotted with standing structure and ruins. These are mostly found at Amathgad. Ruins of a medieval fort too exist here,” said Agrawal.

Earlier, Prof Pradhan had excavated the Gumagad site, where he found a strategic military hub of the first century BC. It was set up by a contemporary of King Kharavela.

Studying further into the formation on copper plate, Agrawal said that a king called Khadgasingha had donated a village Remudaka (modern Remanda) in Saintala. This also throws light on the civilisation.

He feels that further excavation by expert archeologists with the government’s support would shed more light on the civilisation.

The other four copper plates found earlier at Terssingha village also spoke of the Tel valley civilisation.

Those plates had information regarding the two capitals – Udayapur and Parbatadwaraka – which were under the rule of Rashtrakutas and local chieftains belonging to different clans.