“Astonished why CM Majhi didn’t demand special category status in NITI Aayog meeting”: BJD leader Debi Mishra

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], July 28 (ANI): BJD Vice President Debi Prasad Mishra expressed disappointment against Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi for not raising the demand for special category status for the state in the NITI Aayog meeting that was held on Saturday (July 27).

“We expected that the central government in the budget would announce special category status or at least special dispensation for the state of Odisha but it was not considered. I am astonished why CM Mohan Majhi didn’t raise the demand for special category status in the NITI Aayog meeting. It is a genuine demand. We will raise this issue in Rajya Sabha as well as Vidhan Sabha,” told Debi Prasad Mishra to ANI.

He further said that Odisha’s performance as a state is very good and the state has been successful in reducing the poverty.

“During the tenure of former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, according to Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, Odisha’s fiscal discipline is good in the country and Odisha is reducing multi-dimentional poverty. The Gross State Domestic Product of Odisha is sometimes higher than the national. Andhra Pradesh and Bihar got special package; we don’t have any grudges, but the genuine demand of Odisha has not been fulfilled,” he added.

Earlier, Union Minister Satish Chandra Dubey said that under Prime Minister Modi’s government, no state is treated “step-motherly”.

Chief Ministers of opposition-led states including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, Delhi and Punjab boycotted the 9th NITI Aayog’s Governing Council meeting chaired by PM Modi at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre in the national capital.

“Odisha is an inseparable part of India and in PM Modi’s government, no state is treated step-motherly. Everyone will get what they deserve. I will visit NALCO (National Aluminium Company Limited) and will review the arrangements there. A lot of work has been done in the last 10 years,” Union Minister of State for Coal and Mines told reporters.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while presenting a Union Budget 2024-25, made major announcements for Bihar and Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday, including a boost in infrastructure.