Odisha richest but people poor, says Rahul

Salepur (Cuttack): Odisha is one of the richest states in India but the people here are mostly poor. The State government completely failed to utilise the central funds and is not able to provide job to people, says Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi while addressing a public rally at Salepur in Cuttack district on Sunday.

“In my opinion, Odisha is a rich state but the people here are poor. No other government at the Centre has sanctioned such huge amount of money what we have sanctioned to Odisha in last five years”, said Rahul Gandhi
Holding the BJD government responsible for the miserable condition of the State, the young Gandhi scion said people's money are not reaching them and are getting lost mid-way. As many as 10 lakh people are unemployed here while 22 out of 30 districts are affected by Naxal, he added expressing concern over the State government's inactiveness over the issue.

The Congress second in command drew the attention of public regarding basic amenities saying that most of schools are closed in the absence of required numbers of teachers and other infrastructure. Many hospitals are facing the similar condition, Gandhi rued.

Even the mid-day meal meant for the school kids are being looted, he alleged. "We started mid-day meal for the school children, allotted so much money to the state, but BJD guzzled it", says Rahul Gandhi.

Raising the chit fund issue, Rahul said 20 lakh people in the State have been affected in the multi-crore scam. In the mineral rich state like Odisha, crores of money have been looted by the mines mafia. People are job-less here only because the MGNREGA scheme is not properly implemented by the State Government, Rahul said.