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Bhubaneswar: Odisha Agriculture Minister, Pradeeep Maharathy on Tuesday taunted Union Petroleum and Skill Development Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan by referring him as ‘Mahanadi River’- which could dry up.
Maharathy’s remarks came at a time when Odisha is at loggerheads with the Chhattisgarh & central governments over illegal construction of barrages on Mahanadi River by the neighbouring state.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of an event to highlight the achievement of Odisha which bagged the best State in the country award from the Prime Minister under Deen Dayal Upadhyay Grameen Kaushalya Yojna (DDU-GKY), Maharathy took a jibe undermining the role of Union Skill Development Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan.
“He (Pradhan) is for skill development of urban youth but we worked in rural areas. He is like Mahanadi and we are Kharasrota River. The water in Mahanadi and other rivers including Baitarini and Bramhani will dry up but Kharasrota will keep flowing,” said Maharathy.
It is pertinent to mention here that Odisha won the Prime Minister’s Award for best State award in skill development of rural youth for the second year in a row.
According to Maharathy, Odisha has successfully trained and ensured employment for a record 96,000 rural youths under Deen Dayal Upadhyay Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) implemented by Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society (ORMAS).
“Odisha, under the leadership of Naveen Patnaik has been doing a remarkable job and the State’s work in agriculture and other fields is also being recognised by the Centre. We are targeting to provide skill development training to nearly 1 lakh rural youths in the next two years,” Maharathy added.
Reacting to Maharathy's remarks, BJP Spokesperson Sajjan Sharma said, "There is no answer to persons who have the habit of back-bitching. They themselves do not know what they are saying."
