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Following are excerpts from a report in the Statesman.

The authorities of the Wild Animal Conservation Centre (WACC) popularly known as “Deer Park”, are taking a humane approach to its inmates during this scorching summer.

Deer Park is located inside Sambalpur city in a sprawling area of 35 acres, and is home to nearly 210 animals of 19 different species.

“The utmost care has been taken to supply adequate water and shelter to animals inside this centre to improve their welfare during this hot summer. Of course the green coverage inside adds to their comfort; still we have made extra arrangements for sheds inside the centre,” said Mr DK Swain – the DFO (wildlife) of Sambalpur.

… The centre now houses 94 spotted deer, 10 Chausingha, four barking deer, eight bears, five pythons, one leopard, as well as monkeys, parrots, eagles, grey horn bills and other wild birds in good numbers. And all of them are paid due attention by a well experienced ranger, Mr Amulya Kumar Parida, the DFO said.

Since the WACC is a centre of attraction for the people of Sambalpur and neighbouring districts, a proposal to improve it further has been placed before the central zoo authority, Mr Parida. “We would like to increase the number of animals, and create a beautiful garden inside to attract tourists,” the DFO said, displaying a graph showing an increase in visitors. “Our main aim is to rescue and rehabilitate animals and breed them in captivity. We wish to make this centre one-of-a-kind in the country,” he added.

The new Sambalpur MP should pursue this.

Following is an excerpt from a report in the Statesman.

The state government today inked an MoU with RSB Metaltech for setting up of an integrated light metal aluminum complex. The papers were signed by state industries and mines secretary Dr Ashok Dalwai and RSB Metaltech MD Mr SK Behera …

In the first phase, the proposed company, with an investment of around Rs 6,800 crore, will produce about 7 lakh tonnes per of alumina. In the second phase, nearly 1.75 lakh tonnes of aluminium is expected to be produced from the plant. The produced aluminium will be used for production of finer parts in motor vehicles, aerospace, railway and construction industry.

While the mining and refinery units of the project will come up a Rayagada, the smelter unit and power plant are proposed to be set up at Kamakshyanagar in Dhenkanal.

Chief minister Mr Naveen Patnaik said that the project will generate about 11,000 direct and the equal number of indirect jobs. "This project, along with its alumina refinery at Rayagada and Gopalpur port will form an industrial corridor in southern Orissa," Mr Patnaik said adding that the corridor will help fast development, alleviation of poverty and improvement of life of the local people in that region. He suggested that provisions should be made to provide technical education to local youths. "The rehabilitation, resettlement and environment aspect should be taken proper care of," he pointed out.

The Union minister has been requited to expedite and complete the "Therubali-Gunupur railway project to enhance the connectivity in that region," he informed.

I wonder about the progress of the earlier plan of establishing an auto component manufacturing plant near Cuttack by RSB Transmission. (See  http://www.orissalinks.com/orissagrowth/archives/421.)

Following is an excerpt from a news report in the Telegraph.

Painter Jatin Das’s dream of a museum for traditional and contemporary art in his native Orissa has gone international.

Das was in Washington and New York last week outlining his plans for the J.D. Centre of Art in Bhubaneswar to his American and Indian American fans.

At an interactive evening at the Indian embassy here, hosted by India’s deputy chief of mission Raminder Singh Jassal, with slides of his life’s work, Das said the proposed centre would be the first in India to display both traditional and contemporary art in 14 permanent galleries under one roof.

The Orissa government has allotted an acre of land to the painter, who was born in Mayurbhanj. B.V. Doshi, the famous architect from Ahmedabad and associate of Le Corbusier, has designed the master plan for the ambitious centre.

The painter said he had been dreaming of the project for almost a decade and expected that it would cost Rs 50 crore to make it a reality.

“I have been funding the centre, which has a board and a small staff of six people, with money from my paintings. They are temporarily working out of a house in Bhubaneswar given by the state government,” Das told this correspondent.

But he plans to make international requests for funding and hopes Indian Americans will join in the effort.

When the centre is ready, Das will donate his entire collection of 45 years, including paintings, books and antiquities, to the new venture to be housed in one place.

Following is from a report in Telegraph.

Chennai-based Creative Port Development Private Limited today inked a concession agreement with the state government for sharing revenue from a Rs 2187 crore proposed deep-water, all-weather, mechanised port in Balasore.

The company, in December 2006, had signed an MoU with the government to develop the port on the Subernarekha river mouth at Kirtania in Balasore.

The first phase of the port with a handling capacity of 10MTPA has been planned to be commissioned by 2010 and ultimately its capacity would go up to 50MTPA by the 10th year.

As agreed, the company today signed the deal which enables the state to share revenue at the rate of five per cent from first to fifth year, eight per cent from sixth to 10th year, 10 per cent from 11th to 15th year and 12 per cent for the remaining 15 years.

CPDL would enjoy the concession for a period of 30 years, extendable by an additional period of 20 years.

The Orissa government has already involved itself in preparing the master plan for greater Bhubaneswar area. Now there is news regarding its intention to make master plans for 8 more areas. These areas are: Puri-Konark, Rourkela, Sambalpur, Berhampur, Kalinganagar, Paradeep, Jharsuguda, and Talcher-Angul. The govt. is missing a few other areas which it should take up soon. Those are: Baripada, Balasore, Dahamara, Rayagada-Therubali and Koraput-Jeypore. Following are excerpts from a report in Statesman on Orissa govt.’s recent thoughts on this.

In a bid to give major facelift to the upcoming urban areas of the state and for their integrated development, the government will prepare a master plan, within one and half years. The localities include Rourkela, Sambalpur, Berhampur, Puri-Konark, Talcher-Angul, Paradip, Kalinga Nagar and Jharsuguda. … Mr Patnaik underscored the need of adequately trained personnel to successfully handle the technical problems of under-ground sewerage and solid waste management,…. He also stressed on better sanitation, drinking water, housing and slum development. It may be mentioned here that while Rs 950 crore from the funds of JBIC has been sanctioned for sewerage of Cuttack; the capital city has been allotted Rs 499 crore for the same under Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission. Rs 88 crore has been sanctioned for drinking water in Cuttack, Berhampur and Sambalpur. Rs 3.65 crore has also been allotted for slum development in Bhubaneswar.

Telegraph also writes about this.