Special Category Status Demand Echoes in Odisha Assembly

The BJD and Congress parties urged Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to clarify if he demanded special category status for Odisha during the NITI Aayog meeting in Delhi. The request was made soon after Majhi's return from the national capital, highlighting the state's urgent needs.

The BJD and Congress have called on Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to disclose whether he requested special category status for the state at the recent NITI Aayog meeting in Delhi. The opposition parties presented this demand in the Assembly shortly after Majhi's return from the national capital.

During the Zero Hour in the Assembly, senior BJD MLA and former minister Arun Kumar Sahoo insisted that the chief minister should reveal whether he pressed for the special category status, special focus state tag, or any special fund allocations for Odisha during the NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting. Sahoo referred to the BJP's 2014 election manifesto, which promised special status for Odisha, and noted the Centre's recent special allocations to Andhra Pradesh and Bihar.

Congress leader Rama Chandra Kadam backed the call for special category status, pointing out that Odisha's large population of tribals, Dalits, and OBCs, along with its frequent natural disasters, justifies such a status. The Congress MLA, CS Razan Ekka, echoed similar sentiments while raising issues like the Mahanadi water dispute with Chhattisgarh.

(With inputs from agencies.)