TV
Odisha Legislative Assembly’s Winter Session was marked by fervent debates over delayed water projects, on Tuesday. Senior Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLA Badri Narayan Patra said during the Question Hour that delays in water projects have played a pivotal role in 2024 General Election defeats.
“I have personally experienced the voters' anger due to the non-completion of promised projects before elections. Candidates who narrowly lost elections felt the most acute effects of voter dissatisfaction caused by these postponements,” the BJD leader stated.
Also Read: Drinking water projects incomplete in Jajpur as non-Odia contract companies leave midway, residents demand action
Addressing inquiries regarding the progress of the State's water projects, Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Minister Rabi Nayak criticised previous government. He accused previous contractors of misusing funds, claiming they performed only minimal tasks such as installing pipes, ceasing operations before constructing key structures like intake wells.
Sixteen projects have only been completed, leaving 191 still in progress. The department targets the completion of 56 projects by March 2025, with an additional 54 by December 2025, and the remaining 81 by June 2026. The works will be completed under three different categories, according to Minister Nayak.
Must Read: How a women sankirtan troupe helped Odisha village out of water crisis & govt apathy
In light of these criticisms, senior BJD legislator Ganeswar Behera implored action against contractors who ‘absconded after misappropriating funds’. Minister Rabi Nayak emphasised that these contractors were outsiders, not from Odisha, who orchestrated an elaborate scheme to deceive the State through these large-scale water projects.
In his reply in the House, Minister Nayak said, “The contractors concerned only laid pipelines but did not construct the intake wells. Thereby, they have taken away the ‘malai’ (cream) amounting to around 58 percent of the total allocated funds.”
