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Following is an excerpt from a Pragativadi report.

The Centre has decided to implement its new scheme Nutan Deep Yojana for the poor people of three states including Orissa from Deepavali in November this year.
Under the scheme, all poor families of the state would be provided with an electric lantern.

In the first phase, the Centre has decided to distribute 10 lakh electric lanterns in these three states.

While the scheme would be implemented under Aam Admi Yojana formulated by the UPA government, a total of five districts of Orissa would be included in the scheme.
A total of one crore electric lantern would be distributed under the scheme.

Following are excerpts from an Indian Express article.

Aam Admi Bima Yojana (Launch Date: October 2)

Announced in this year’s Budget, the scheme will be launched on Gandhi Jayanti . It provides for insurance to the head of the family or an earning member of the family of a rural landless household who is aged between 18 and 59 years against natural as well as accidental death and against partial/permanent disability.

The family is entitled to Rs 75,000 as insurance in case of accidental death or permanent disability of the head or earning member of the household. In case of natural death and partial disability, the benefits would amount to Rs 37,500. The annual premium per member is Rs 200, to be equally shared by the Centre and the state Government.

Health Insurance Scheme for BPL Workers (Launch: October 2)

After the Social Security Bill for the unorganised sector came under severe criticism from Left parties, which said it had no specific schemes for the sector, the UPA Government decided to announce a specific health insurance scheme for such workers. The Health Insurance Scheme for Workers in the Unorganised Sector would be launched in a phased manner for BPL workers/families from October 2. All the beneficiaries will be issued smart cards for identification.

National Old Age Pension (Launch: November 19)

The UPA Government has said it will provide old age pension to all citizens above the age of 65 years and living below the poverty line. This marks an expansion of the existing Old Age Pension Scheme, from covering only “persons of 65 years or higher and a destitute” under pension to one “who is 65 years or higher and belonging to a household below the poverty line (BPL)”. The launch is to coincide with Indira Gandhi’s birth anniversary on November 19.

Scholarship for Minority Students (Already launched)

Keeping in view the Sachar Committee report, the UPA Government announced a Centrally sponsored scheme of Merit Cum Means Based Scholarship to students from Minority Communities pursuing professional/technical courses at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

The scheme, which will provide scholarship to 20,000 students every year, will cover a large chunk of the tuition fees as well as provide maintenance allowance to selected beneficiaries from the minority community throughout their professional course. In case of 50 identified institutes, which include IITs, IIMs, NITs, AIIMS and others, the Government has announced that the tuition fees would be paid in full.

Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (Announced on August 15)

With suicides by farmers still a political hot potato and the agrarian crisis showing no signs of abating, the UPA Government announced a Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) on Independence Day. With an allocation of Rs 25,000 crore over the next five years, the scheme is meant to push up investment in agriculture substantially.

It aims to encourage state Governments to raise their agricultural expenditure, hoping this would boost agriculture and allied sector production as well as productivity and farm incomes, and reduce yield gaps across the country.

National Food Security Mission (Announced on August 15)

Concerned over food security and mindful of the fact that it had to resort to wheat imports for the second consecutive year in a row, the Government launched the National Food Security Mission (NFSM), which is aimed at increasing the production of rice by 10 million tonnes, wheat by 8 million tonnes and pulses by 2 million tonnes by 2011-12. It also hopes to create additional employment opportunities. The Government has identified 305 districts in 16 states where Rs 4,900 crore would be invested over the next 5 years.

National Policy for Farmers (Likely launch: October 2)

Having already announced two major schemes for the agriculture sector, the UPA Government has also decided to act on the recommendations of the National Commission on Farmers, which it had constituted when it came to power in 2004. One of these recommendations was a National Policy for Farmers. The policy, to be announced soon, will replace the existing National Agricultural Policy, 2000.

Education Mission (Announced on August 15)

Taking a step forward from the 54 per cent expansion of the higher education infrastructure, the Government has announced setting up of eight new IITs, seven new IIMs, three new IISERs and 30 new Central universities. In the secondary education sector, a massive expansion plan is on the table involving upgradation of over 1 lakh schools. Another 6,000 new schools of good quality are being planned. And the PM has given a stiff deadline of two months for finalising the infrastructure, including their locations.

The following is from a Orissa government press release:

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik met the Union Power Minister Shri Sushil Kumar Shinde and pressed for inclusion of all the 30 districts of the State in the Village Electrification Programme this year. The Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY) has so far included only 4 districts of the State for Village Electrification. The CM, Orissa claimed that since DPRs have been prepared for all the 30 districts of the State, in-principle sanction should be communicated by Government of India for all of them. The Union Power Minister informed the CM, Orissa that the matter will be placed before the Union Cabinet and that it may be possible to sanction projects for the entire State within the next 2 to 3 months.

It may be recalled that the State has launched the Biju Gram Jyoti Programme of Village Electrification from its own funds because of the inordinate delay in sanctioning projects under RGGVY by Government of India. The State Cabinet has cleared the proposal and it will be extended to those villages and habitations which cannot be covered by the RGGVY under their norms.

Discussions were also held regarding setting up of an Ultra Mega Power Plant within the State of Orissa by Government of India. The Union Power Minister requested the CM, Orissa to facilitate all clearances so that the project can be launched in the State of Orissa. The CM, Orissa assured the Union Power Minister that all facilities will be provided to the project soon. He further impressed upon the Government of India that the project should adopt the R&R Policy which has been announced by the Government of Orissa for the various industrial projects coming up within the State. The Union Power Minister agreed to adopt the State?s R&R Policy which is one of the best in the country.

As per newkerala.com:

The 2843/2844 Puri-Ahmedabad-Puri Express (via Khurda Rd-Vijainagaram- Rayagada) will now run four days in a week from October five next. According to East Coast Railways (ECoR), the train would leave from Puri every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday from October 5.

The Hindu reported today that the chief representative of PRI(Posco Research Institute) has made some adverse comments on the progress of MOUs in Orissa.

Taking excerpts mentioned in the report:

“Chief Representative of PRI Chang-ho Kwag said the social infrastructure of the State was not proper to absorb mega projects. “Attitude and mindset of State Government and people towards projects need to be changed. Education of people to understand the real cost benefit of industrial project was necessary in which the state government has a big role,” Mr. Kwag said.“West Bengal can be a good example. Why is every good project taking shape in West Bengal? I think the State Government played a key role there,” he said.

Despite being a State governed by Left parties, the State adopted itself in post-liberalisation era, the PRI Director said.

All the coastal states of India showed healthy GDP growth while Orissa lagged with 3.5 per cent rate growth compared to West Bengal’s nearly 6 per cent, he said.

“The Government needs to set up service mechanism for expediting mega projects,” Mr. Kwag said. The Posco Research Institute said Chinese government had engaged two to three of its personnel for one big project so that they could take care of different processes and ensure project getting converted into reality.“

The Head of PRI must understand that Orissa is not a communist country like China. Where if requirements are provided by companies, local protests are crushed using an Iron hand and value propositions are ignored completely. Rehabilitation is a complicated process.

It is surprising to note, that , the head of PRI has mentioned that most projects are coming up in West Bengal. Do they actually think, that they would get a captive port in West bengal and also land at such cheap rates which is being provided to them in Orissa.

Also, they might actually mention which big projects are coming to West Bengal. In West Bengal land acquisition is easier since, the writ of the local communist runs in every block. Even then a Nandigram has happenned there.

Perhaps, he should see the amount if strikes that happen in West bengal. A bandh(strike) is a regular feature of life in the state. If this is considered business friendly then we have some new rules for business.

The truth of the matter is that, Orissa has been second fastest in implementation of MOUs in the country.

Let it be noted ,that , it is a combination of land and accesibility to a sea-port which makes Orissa an attractive destination.

Perhaps, the head of PRI is not aware that according to a World Bank report, Orissa is supposed to be the fastest place to start a Business among all states in India.

Perhaps, some of the statements can be reconsidered.

Following is an excerpt on this from a report in The Times of India.

Over the next couple of months, low-cost carrier IndiGo will base two aircraft in Kolkata to connect more stations out of the city and increase frequency in metro sectors.

Apart from flights to India’s dream holiday destination, Goa, the carrier will also connect Kolkata to Imphal and Bhubaneswar by November.

Following are excerpts from a report in New Indian Express.

The State Government has prepared a Rs 850-crore draft project proposal under the National Food Security Mission (NFSM) for placing before the Centre for funding. The objective of the mission is to increase production and productivity of rice and pulses in 21 of 30 districts of the State in a sustainable manner.

The other objectives are to enhance farm level economy, restore confidence among farmers and create employment opportunities.

While 15 districts will be covered under NFSM for rice, 10 districts have been chosen for increased production of pulses. While Balangir, Kalahandi, Keonjhar and Nayagarh will be covered under the mission both in rice and pulses, the districts covered under NFSM in pulses include Bargarh, Cuttack, Ganjam, Khurda, Puri and Rayagada.

The project, to be implemented during the 11th Plan period , is expected to cover 20 lakh hectares for rice cultivation and 13.57 lakh hectares for pulses. The State has planned to increase yield of rice from 1,690 kg per hectare in 2007-08 to 2,095 kg per hectare by 2011-12 in the mission districts.

The estimated production of rice in the mission districts will increase from 33 lakh tonnes to 42 lakh tonnes. It has projected to enhance the productivity of pulses from 478 kg per hectare in 2007-08 to 594 kg per hectare in 2011-12. The low yield of rice in the State is due to several factors.

While more cultivable areas are under rainfed conditions, the kharif and rabi crops are totally dependent on monsoon rains. Lack of farm mechanisation, improved technology, training of farmers, soil management, pest management and non-availability of quality seeds are the other factors for low productivity.

The Centre will provide full financial assistance and the fund will be utilised for introduction of hybrid seeds, scientific management of problematic soil, pest management, farm mechanisation, training of farmers, Agriculture Director Arabinda Padhee said. The Government has projected to spend Rs 650 crore for rice production and Rs 200 crore for improved farming of pulses.

This is reported in many papers, such as Telegraph. Thus, the Bhubaneswar Trident Hilton will become simply Trident.

Following is tathya.in’s take on this.

Finally it is Lalu Prasad Yadav giving waking up call to the sleeping states.

The Union Railways Minister him self has announced that he will present an “unprecedented and astonishing” rail budget for 2008-09.

He on 25 September said at Motihari, while addressing a gathering.

“The thrust will be on further expanding the network in the country”, said he.

So he has in fact drawn the attention of the Chief Ministers of the various states having poor railways infrastructure to rise to the occasion and grab the opportunity offered by the Ministry of Railways.

Never in the past, the Minister of Railways announced before hand that the forthcoming budget will be “unprecedented”.

Reading his mind an insider in the Railway Board said that Mr.Prasad is in a mood to dole out large chunk of investments to the less developed states.

Obviously Orissa has a big chance to grab the opportunity, said he.

So without wasting time the state should take a cue from the hints given by Mr.Prasad, said the insider.

And fortunately the Railway Board Chairman K C Jena belongs to Orissa.

In this scenario asking for an “unprecedented amount of investment for the state will be justified”, said the source.

“If any body has a close look at the demands of Orissa, it hovered around Rs.600 crore per annum.

“With this amount of investment in railway sector, the state will have to wait for another three decades to come up to a level”, said he.

In a realistic assessment the state needs investment at least Rs.3000 crores per annum for at least 10 years to connect its hinter land with the main areas”, revealed an expert in railways.

“Will the chief Minister take a note of the hint given by Mr.Prasad and demand accordingly”, said he.

Now it is time for the all party assembly committee on railways to demand more for the rail projects, which needs immediate funding.

And the list is unending as because the investment level has remained at an abysmally low level because of the laid back attitude of the state government coupled with the callous mentality of the Centre.

The railway minister Lalu Yadav has recently hinted that he is ready for rail network expansion. Following are excerpts from an Economic Times article about it. (Thanks to Rajesh Toppo for the pointer.)

Promising the next rail budget to be unprecedented and astonishing, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav on Tuesday said its thrust will be on further expanding the network in the country.

“The next budget for the Railways will be unprecedented and astonishing. We want to further expand the network in the country and reach such people who have not yet got the opportunity to use its service,” Prasad said while addressing a gathering here after flagging off a new train between Motihari and Varanasi.

Describing the Railways as the country’s “lifeline”, he said, “Though India has the largest rail network in the world, we want to take it to the people who are not yet reached.”

From the above it seems Lalu is open to rail network expansion to hinterlands. But unless Orissa makes its demands in time, they may lose out on this.

Following are excerpts from a news item in Tathya.in.

… the Bharati Shipyard Limited (BSL), a major private shipyard and the Apeejay Surendra Group, an industrial conglomerate have joined hands to set up the-State-of-the-art shipbuilding yard and ship repair yard project at Dhamra in Orissa.

The mega shipyard project will entail an investment of Rs.2200 crore in 3 phases.

Employment opportunities in this labor intensive industry will be 41,000 in the third phase, reveals the proposal submitted to the State Government.

… Revealing the strength of the state over others, the promoter said that easy availability of raw material like steel, availability of large number of skilled, unskilled man power and above all the proactive government policies dotted with positive environment for investors are creating conducive atmosphere for a mega shipyard in the state.

The requirement of steel in shipbuilding and repairing has been projected as in the first phase it will be up to 75,000 MT per annum, while in second phase it will go up to 2,30,000 MT.

In the final phase the steel requirement will go up to 4, 50,000 MT said the source.

… The proposed site has been identified near the Dhamra Port, where out of 1500 acres surveyed 1050 acre of land has been provisionally selected for the mega shipyard.

According to implementation schedule the promoters have decided to go for Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Government of Orissa in the month of October.

Once MOU in place than other activities will follow, said the source.

Rehabilitation Plan will be taken up in accordance with the present Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy of the State Government.

… Milestones set up for the project envisages that Master Plan will be ready in the next year and construction of the shipyard will begin in mid of 2008.

The Joint venture promoters feel that the project will complete its first phase construction in early 2009 to begin commercial production by middle of the year.

Pioneer reports that an oyster park will be created in Puri.

Excerpts”

The Puri coast will soon have an international oyster development project covering about 3,000 acres of the sea beach to attract more and more tourists from abroad. 31 corporate giants and industrial houses both from India and abroad, for which the State Government received applications recently, will fund this ambitious project.Announcing this to the Press, State Tourism Minister Debi Prasad Mishra said that in addition to this, global quotations would be invited for the establishment of a new ‘Conference and Golf Tourism’ in the same belt in Puri district as the State has vast potential for such type of ventures for tourism development .

The Government has also decided to go ahead with a new project named ‘Camp Tourism’ in the vast coastline connecting Puri, Rajahansa in Chilika, Sanaparikuda and Harachandi Temple to attract tourist traffic to various spots.

For this, the Government has introduced a Mega Circuit Area Development Project to operate in the area.

The Minister further said that the Government is hopeful of at least 20 per cent increase in tourist flow to the State this year. He said special attention would be given for heritage tourism, cultural tourism, eco tourism, beach tourism, Buddhist — Jain temple tourism and tribal and rural tourism.“

Update: Tathya.in has a nice article on this. Following is an excerpt.

The temple of Taratarini, the twin Goddesses, is situated on the top of a blue capped hill of Purusottampur, only 32 KM from Berhampur.

The following invitation for bids is for

• the construction of a Garden of peace at Dhauli which will include an amphitheater, and
• group housing scheme at Gadkana.

Following is from a report in the Statesman:

The industries secretary Mr A Dalwai will hold the additional charge of the office of the chairman, IDCOL,Bhubaneswar, while Mr Tuhin Kanta Pandey has been appointed as the transport commissioner.

Mr Pradipta Mohapatra has been appointed as the resident commissioner, government of Orissa, New Delhi against the vacant post.

Mr AK Meena, at present, MD, IPICOL has also appointed as the Managing Director, IDCOL in addition to his own duties.

On the advice of the Orissa Public Service Commission, the state government today promoted several OAS officers (Senior Grade in Supertime Scale) to OAS (Superior Administrative Grade) on adhoc basis with a scale of payment of Rs.15,100-400-19,500.

The OAS officers who received the promotion to the superior administrative grade are Mr Anirudha Rout, Mr Bipin Bihari Naik, Mr Siba Prasad Mishra, Mr Gyanaranjan Dash, Mr Narayan Chandra Jena, Mr Bichitranananda Das and Mr Bhabani Sankar Panda.

Mr Gangadhar Singh, the collector of Kandhamal has been appointed as the additional secretary, higher education department, while Mr Hrusikesh , presently the additional secretary, law department has been posted as collector in Bhadrak.

Following are excerpts from an article in Pioneer written by Susim C Sahani.

Susim C Sahani | Sundargarh

Despite decade-old debates and agitations, the most sought-after Bimlagarh-Talcher rail link is still a distant dream for this tribal-dominated district. However, if the railway project sees the light of the day, it can help reduce the distance between Bhubaneswar and Rourkela from 180 km to 150 km besides providing the most viable transport links to the potential mines zone in the district to the port in Paradip.

The rail-link project has been eluding the locals here since 1955. With the inception of Rourkela Steel Plant, a 75-km-long rail route was set up linking Rourkela to Barsuan for the iron ore mines in Bonaigarh sub-division. The tribals, inhabiting the villages all along this rail route, have been deprived of passenger train facilities although the iron-loaded goods trains have stoppages at stations like Roxy and Bimlagarh. In what seems to be an imitation of a common sight in Bihar and Jharkhand, the tribals here too board the iron-ore loaded wagons of the freight trains. If the goods train tragedy a year-and-half ago that killed over 20 persons on this route, including an eight-year-old tribal boy, is any indication, then tribals travelling this way is likely to cause more fatal accidents in the coming days.

Sources said the Hindustan Steel Limited (HSL), now rechristened as Steel Authority of India (SAIL), in collaboration with Germany, had conducted an aerial survey for the Rourkela Steel Plant and the German experts then had strongly recommended the Bimlagarh-Talcher rail-link project, linking Rourkela with Paradip Port via Talcher. The rail-route was also expected to make mineral transportation more economical by direct rail links to the key mining zones of the State with Paradip Port and to the mines of Ranchi and Bokaro.

Unfortunately, due to the feeble leadership in Orissa, former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru could not be convinced about the utility of such a promising project. …

Minister of Civil Aviation, Mr. Praful Patel was visiting Orissa and he made some statements regarding airports in Orissa. following are excerpts from various news reports on this.

Economic Times/PTI:

The Centre plans to set up another airport at Jharsuguda in western Orissa besides upgrading the existing Biju Patnaik Airport here to that of international standard, Civil Aviation minister Praful Patel said on Monday.

Announcing the Centre’s plan, he said that as one airport is not adequate for the state, the Centre has decided to develop another one in Orissa.

“The Centre will also upgrade the Bjiu Patnaik Airport since there are a lot of activities here,” Patel told a meeting here.

The union minister’s announcement about an international airport came in the wake of rapid industrialisation drive in the state with investors making a beeline for it.

The need for an airport of international standard was also echoed by state Tourism Minister Debi Prasad Mitra.

“An airport of international standard is essential for the state’s overall growth,” Mishra said.

Besides catering to the business houses, the international airport would help tour operators bring foreign tourists to the state which has a 480 km coastline, sanctuaries, historical monuments like the Sun Temple at Konark and beaches, he said.

Tathya.in:

The Union Civil Aviation Ministry is in process of preparing a Cabinet Memorandum to be placed to make Bhubaneswar an international airport.

This was disclosed by Prafulla Patel, Union Minister for Civil Aviation in the sidelines of a media conference held here on 24 September.

He said the Memorandum is being given final shape and soon will be sent to the Cabinet for approval.

The demand to declare the Biju Patnaik Airport at Bhubaneswar as an international airport has gained ground in view of the abundant tourism potential in the state, said Mr.Patel.