District Congress hartal demanding booking of BJD MLA disrupts life

Statesman News service Nawarangpur, 18 September
The district Congress sponsored 12 hour hartal disrupted normal life here today. Shops and business establishments remained closed while vehicles, particularly the public transport, went off road.
The hartal was to exert pressure on the police to book local ruling BJD MLA Manohar Randhari for his alleged involvement in the torture of a lady former chairperson of Tentulikhunti block Prabhati Kandha.
On 15 September, Prabhati lodged a police complaint against Randhari alleging that during the elections in April this year she had given Rs. 4 lakh and gold ornaments weighing 70 gm in presence of some party activists which the legislator did not return. 
She alleged that the legislator attempted to have physical relationship with her but she strongly resisted it. Unhappy with her MLA Randhari is alleged to have hatched a conspiracy to remove her from the post of block chairperson. 
The police made a station diary entry of her complaint and claimed it is investigating the matter. 

Meanwhile the district youth BJD president Badri Narayan Singh, said in media conference that Prabhati never complaint about the harassment nor money before the district president and any executive members. After the no confidence motion she resigned from the chairperson post.
“It is a baseless and politically motivated charge that Prabhati is levelling now, “said Singh. The district secretary of the BJD Asis Ranjan Patnaik, alleged that the Congress is trying to politicise the matter and that the hartal was unwarranted as the police investigation is on.
Patnaik recalled that in 2000 Prabhati had resorted to similar tactics against another person and her charges did not stick as the court acauitted the person against whom she had levelled certain false charges.
The local Congress however stuck to its stand saying once the lady had lodged a complaint , it is the the duty of the police to register a case against the MLA and summon him for interrogation. Instead of taking action, the police has been dilly dallying to provide time to ruling BJD leaders to intimidate Prabhati, alleged Congress activists here.

CONGRESS HARTAL DISRUPTS NORMAL LIFE IN N’RANGPUR

Friday, 19 September 2014 | BASANT RATH | 
NABARANGPUR |

The Congress called a 10-hour hartal in the Nabarangpur Assembly constituency on Thursday demanding action against Nabarangpur BJD MLA Manohar Randhari for his alleged involvement in the torture of former chairperson of Tentulikhunti block Prabhati Kandha.

Normal life was affected in many parts of the constituency. Shops and other business establishments remained closed in this town. Vehicular traffic came to a grinding halt as buses, trucks, auto-rickshaws and were off the roads.

On September 15, Prabhati lodged a complaint with the police alleging that during the elections in April this year she had given Randhari Rs 4 lakh and gold ornaments weighting 70 gram in the presence of some party activists which the MLA has not returned.

Prabhati also alleged that Randhari had attempted to have physical relationship with her, but she strongly resisted it. Unhappy with her, the MLA allegedly hatched a conspiracy to remove her from the post of block chairperson.

The police have already made a station diary after receiving the complaint and the matter is under investigation.

Meanwhile BJD district youth president Badri Narayan Singh told the media that Prabhati never complained about the ‘harassment’ or money before the district party president and any executive member. After the no-confidence motion against her, she resigned from the chairperson post. She is now trying to tarnish the image of the MLA, he added.

BJD district general secretary Asis Ranjan Patnaik also told the media that prior to this during her Sarpanch tenure in the year 2000, Prabhati had questionably directed the panchayat secretary Radha Kanta Bissoyi to approve work orders. But when Bissoyi did not agree, she filed a fabricated report of sexual harassment before the police. While the police refused to register a case, she also filed a complaint case before the SDJM, Nabarangpur which did not succeed.

Nabarangpur Zilla Nagarika Surakhya “O” Sachetana Manch Submitted Memorandum to link 4 blocks of dist. in Biju Express Highway

Nabarangpur:

A delegation of the Zilla Nagarika Surakhya O Sachetana Mancha  submitted memorandum to Chief Minister, Sri Naveen Patnaik, through the collector Md.Sadique Alam, demanding to divert the proposed Biju Express Highway  from Papadahandi junction to Dabugam, Umerkote, Jharigam, Chandahandi and then Dharamgarh instead of Maidalpur-Ampani-Kenduguda as to because the existing NH-26 passing through Nabarangpur-Papadahandi-Ampani-Junagarh-Bargarh.

The projected connectivity network to Dabugam-Umerkote-Jharigam-Chandahandi will help to boost agriculture, trade & commerce, and social sector development. It will also support Nabarangpur district’s initiatives in mainstreaming socially and economically backward people.

The Memorandum submitted as Follows:-

=================================

To,

Shri. Naveen Patnaik,

Hon’ble Chief Minister, Odisha

Bhubaneswar.

It has been proposed to start  BIju Express Highway spending Rs. 3200 crores as announced recently which would be started from Chandli i.e. Odisha Border touching to Jagadalpur (Chattisghar) to Rourkela  Via Kotpad, Boriguma, Nabarangpur, Papadahandi, Maidalpur, Ampani, Kenduguda, Dharamgarh, Nuapada, Saintala, Bargarh, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, and Rourkela linking 4 districts of KBK and 4 districts  of Western Odisha.

But keeping in view of the public opinions and convenient sources of Nabarangpur district people our Zilla Nagirika Surakhya O Sachetana Mancha Nabarangpur would like place the proposal before Mr. Naveen Patnaik, hon’ble chief minister of Odisha State to be kind enough to divert the above proposed Biju Express Highway from Papadahandi junction to Dabugam, Umerkote, Jharigam, Chandahandi and then Dharamgarh instead of Maidalpur-Ampani-Kenduguda as to because the existing NH-26 passing through Maidalpur-Ampani-Junagarh-Bargarh.

Our proposal is to cover the entire Nabarangpur district which would be resulted more convenient communication to Nabarangpur district people especially the inhabitants of Dabugam, Umerkote, Jharigam and Chandahandi block which are existing at the border point of Odisha State wholesome tribal and Maoist infested blocks.

Development through infrastructure building has always been at the top of agenda of  hon’ble  chief minister.

Socio-economic growth always follows quality road connectivity. Biju Expressway will be immensely helpful in boosting the economy of western Odisha and KBK districts including the five blocks of Nabarangpur district.

Our Zilla Nagirika Surakhya “O” Sachetana Mancha highly thankful to honble chief minister for his historical achievement for the tribal and backward peoples “This massive connectivity network will help boost agriculture, trade & commerce, and social sector development. It will also support our initiatives in mainstreaming socially and economically backward people”

Thanking you.

                                                                             Yours faithfully.

*Copy submitted to Sri. Ramesh Chandra Majhi, Minister Commerce & Transport, Odisha, Bhubaneswar / Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) Er. Balabhadra Majhi, for kind information and pursue action.

*Copy submitted to Admistrator KBK, Chief Engineer R&B, Collector, Nabarangpur  for kind information and needful action.

Freedom Fighter & Former CM Sadasiba Tripathy remembered.

Nabarangpur: Basant Rath, Journalist

Rich Tributes were paid to freedom fighter and former chief minister Dr. Sadasiba Tripathy, in Nabarangpur  on the occasion of his death anniversary.

The Guests garlanded the late leader’s statue at the Sadasiba Park near the Municipal Office here to mark the occasion later a meeting was organised at the park in which Commerce and Transport Minister Ramesh Chandra Majhi was the chief guest, Collector Md. Sadique Alam, ADM Bhimman Seth, Former MP Pradeep Majhi, Former MLA Sadan Nayak,   Senior advocate and public prosecutor  Prakesh Mishra,  DCC President Narayan Patra, Municipal Chairperson Basanti Soura, Vice-Chairman Prahalad Tripathy, DIPRO Bhujang Bhusan Rao were the other guests at the meeting.  Minister Majhi said that his Government has taken several steps during the celebration of the 100th birth anniversary of Dr. Sadasiv Tripathy. He thanked Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for the installation of statue at Kalinga Hospital junction.

The illustrious son of this soil, Sadashiba Tripathy, who was born on April 21, 1910, served as a teacher and was associated with the National Congress. After the formation of Odisha as a separate State in 1936, the freedom struggle gained momentum in the undivided Koraput district. Tripathy played a pioneering role in leading the people of Koraput in the freedom movement and was responsible for the political awakening of the people of this tribals-dominated region. He was imprisoned for a year during the individual Satyagraha movement and was also under detention during Quit India movement. Tripathy was a Minister in the State for a period of 12 years, and throughout his Ministerial tenure his main portfolio was Revenue. He was also the Chief Minister for a short period in the late 1970s. As an expert in revenue administration, he piloted the Odisha Zamindary Abolition and Land Reforms Bill in the legislature. He was also the secretary of the Odisha Bhoodan Yajna Samiti.

Model Degree College soon In Nabarangpur.

Nabarangpur: Basant Rath, Journalist

The district administration has initiated process for setting up a model degree college in the district under the centrally sponsored scheme Establishment of Model Degree Colleges in Educationally Backward districts.

The project cost has been estimated Rs. 12 crores and in the first phase Rs. 2.5 crore has been sanctioned. Collector Md. Sadique Alam, said we have

already identified land for the college at Nuaguda in Nandahandi block also discussed with the Executive Engineer R & B for tender process.  

The Higher Education Secretary Gagan Dhal said in a latter that the Union Human Resource Development Ministry have provided funds for establishment of Model Degree Colleges in Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) districts to provide better education facility and to ensure equality and access to the students of the locality. The unit cost for the development of infrastructure of the college is Rs. 12 crores. Out of which a sum of Rs. 2.5 crores has been initially placed with Executive Engineer of R &B vide letter No 17245 dated 30^th July 2014 with model layout for the college.

Mr. Dhal, requested collectors to ensure the tendering process for construction of building within September 2014. Also requested collectors to monitor the construction work of it regularly so that   the colleges will start functioning from the coming academic session 2015-16. Such college will also be set up in Boudh, Deogarh, Malkangiri, Nayagarh,  Nuapada, Rayagada and Sonepur districts.

According to UGC norms, the Centre will provide assistance to the extent of one-third of the capital cost for each college with maximum margin being ` 2.67 crore. Also, the land for college will be provided free of cost by the State Government.

The model colleges which are part of the Centre’s new scheme to provide assistance to set up a model degree college in each of the identified 374 educationally backward districts in the country where GER for higher education is less than the national average. This scheme is also part of government's policy for access, participation and expansion of higher education.

The scheme aims at increasing the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in educationally backward districts where the GER is less than the national average of 12.4 per cent and subsequently increase the GER in higher education from 12.4 pc to 30 pc by 2020.

In June last year, the Department of Higher Education had placed a proposal before the UGC for opening model degree colleges in Boudh (having GER of 6.8 pc), Deogarh (9.7), Malkangiri (3.9), Nayagarh (9.6), Nabarangapur (3.5), Nuapada (6.7), Rayagada (6.7) and Sonepur (10.5).

Axis Bank hosts blood donation camp at Nabarangpur

Nabarangpur: Basant Rath, Journalist

Terming blood donation as “life-saving humanitarian effort”, the Additional district magistrate Bhimman Seth inaugurated a blood donation camp at Axis Bank, Nabarangpur branch on Sunday.

Some bank staffers and volunteers donated blood during the camp held in collaboration with Rotary Club, Aama Odisha, Red Cross Society and Christian Hospital Nabarangpur.

Axis Branch Manager Debi Prasad padhi,  Rotary President Pramod Kumar Tripathy, General Secretary Ajaya Kumar Sahu, Former presidents Jhadeswar Khadanga, Debi Prasad Patnaik former secretary M.Mohan Rao, Rotary Project director Dr. Santosh Kumar Nag, Ama Odisha District head Suresh Naidu, district  red cross society and Christian Hospital staffs present during the camp.