Odisha and Andhra Pradesh Formulate Plan to Tackle Polavaram Dispute

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced a meeting with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu to address the Polavaram issue, which threatens to inundate parts of Odisha. The discussion coincided with deliberations on the potato supply crisis in Odisha, involving West Bengal's Mamata Banerjee.

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday declared that he will convene a meeting with his Andhra Pradesh counterpart, N Chandrababu Naidu, to resolve the ongoing Polavaram issue affecting both states.

Upon his return from the Governing Council meeting of NITI Aayog in Delhi on July 27, Majhi disclosed that he had engaged in a dialogue with Naidu regarding the Polavaram project as well as discussed the potato crisis with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

'I held a discussion with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on the Polavaram issue and proposed a chief ministerial level meeting to resolve it, which he accepted,' Majhi told reporters at Bhubaneswar airport.

Odisha opposes the Polavaram project fearing that the current plans would inundate large tracts of land in Malkangiri district. The issue has been a flashpoint and was also raised in the assembly, with Congress and BJD members protesting the BJP-led central government's support for the project.

Leader of Opposition, former chief minister Naveen Patnaik stated that the state has been fighting for justice on the issue, criticizing the Centre for allocating funds without addressing Odisha's grievances. Previously, during Patnaik's BJD rule, the state had sent numerous letters to the Centre demanding resolutions to the issues posed by Polavaram.

Majhi, however, believes that merely writing letters will not resolve the problem. He also mentioned meeting Banerjee, in the presence of chief secretaries from both states, to discuss the crisis stemming from the discontinuation of potato supplies to Odisha.