Mahanadi row: Congress team visits barrage site in Chhattisgarh

Bhubabneswar: A seven-member delegation of the Congress, led by Opposition leader Narsingh Mishra, visited the construction site of the contentious barrage in the upper catchment of Mahanadi river in Chhattisgarh today.

Soon after the site inspection, Mishra said the team will hold talks with officials of Chhatisgarh government regarding the ongoing construction work on the river.

“We will gather information regarding the barrage from concerned officials of Chhatisgarh government. Besides we will have a discussion with the Odisha government officials on the issue and prepare a report,” Mishra stated.

Sources said, the delegation including Naba Kishore Das, Subala Sahu, Debendra Sharma, Prakash Chandra Behera, Ansuman Mohanty and Jogesh Kumar Singh will meet the officials of Chhatisgarh government tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the ruling BJD has rejected the proposal of the Congress party for an all party meet on the issue and decide on an appropriate response to the unilateral move by the Chhattisgarh government.

“Both Congress and BJP are national parties. Any decision on any issue is always taken by the top brasses at the Centre. So we are not in favour of the all party meet as proposed by Leader of Opposition Narasingha Mishra,” BJD spokesperson Pratap Keshari Deb said.