By Our Correspondent
BALANGIR/BHUBANESWAR: Various developmental projects worth Rs 890 crore on Saturday launched by Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Saturday in Balangir.
The event was graced by the presence of Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo , Health and Family Welfare Minister Mukesh Mahaling, MP Sangeeta Kumari Singh Deo, Rajya Sabha MP Niranjan Bishi, MLA from Kantabanji Laxman Bagh and District Collector of Balangir Gaurav Shivaji Isalwar.
Majhi, who is on a two-day visit to Balangir district, launched a total of 83 projects such as irrigation, health infrastructure, piped water supply, bridge, road sectors. He addressed two public meetings organized for this purpose at Belpada and Patnagarh during the day.
The Chief Minister has laid the foundation stone for the upgradation of the 1330-meter airstrip runway at Tusura Airstrip at a cost of Rs 65 crore. After the upgradation, this airstrip will be included in the 2-B category and this will enable direct air travel between Balangir and Bhubaneswar and this will further accelerate the development of the district.
Shri Majhi has also laid the foundation stone for the development of the Upper Lanth Irrigation Project of Belpada block worth more than Rs 300 crore.
On this occasion, the Chief Minister said that his government is taking all steps to create maximum irrigation facilities in all the blocks of Odisha where the irrigation rate is low.
Stating that the trend of development of Balangir has started from today, he said, after the implementation of the irrigation project, more than 15,000 acres of land will be irrigated in both Kharif and Rabi seasons and more than 38,000 farmers from 25 villages of Belpada block will benefit from this.
As per the Cabinet decision, from now on, farmers will get a minimum price of Rs 3100 for paddy. There will be no cut-off in the sale of paddy, he said.
The Chief Minister further said that this project is a strong step to solve the water problem of Belpada block and Balangir district and it will be completed within a specified time frame.
The State government will not make mistakes like the previous BJD government did by misappropriating money in the execution of Lower Suktel Project, he said.
The Chief Minister, addressing the people of the district, said that Balangir district is the heart of Western Odisha, adding, “Our government is committed to eliminating the injustice and inequality of development that has taken place in the last 75 years.”
The Chief Minister inaugurated the Patnagarh Sub-Divisional Medical and Dialysis Centre and a Dialysis Centre in Titlagarh to strengthen the health service infrastructure in the district. He also laid the foundation stone for the much-awaited bypass road of Patnagarh.
The bypass road, which will be built at a cost of Rs 118 crore, will have a four-lane paved road, two bridges over the Subarna Rekha and Mayawati Nal, and 28 new box culverts. This bypass road will solve the traffic problem in Patnagarh.
Highlighting the Khurda-Balangir railway project, the Chief Minister said that after the successful Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji took charge, the work on this railway project is progressing at a fast pace.
More than 152 km of work has been completed on both sides. Very soon, the 73 km railway line from Sonepur to Old Cuttack will be completed and the much-awaited Khurda-Balangir railway will run. This is a reflection of Modi ji’s love for Odisha, he noted.
Shri Majhi said that now there is a double engine government in the State, so the pace of development in Balangir district is going at express speed. Double engine government is running in the State and triple engine government is running in Balangir because two public representatives of the district are representing the Odisha government.
Along with this, many MPs and MLAs are also representing the government party from the district. The Chief Minister said that the double engine government is going to write a new history of development in Odisha, he added.
The CM requested the people to give their well-considered opinions for the vision document to be prepared for the formation of a developed Odisha and a developed India, saying that with “your opinions and your participation, we will build the Odisha of our dreams – a prosperous Odisha, a developed Odisha.”
The Chief Minister also inaugurated the new circuit house built at a cost of Rs. 8.78 crore in Bolangir today.
At the event, Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo said that both the Chief Minister and his department are involved in this other infrastructure project, so this project work will be completed very soon. He said that all these projects have been launched after our government comes to power and the State government will also inaugurate them.
