Bhubaneswar: A day after the NITI Aayog released Baseline Report of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index, the Opposition political parties on Saturday criticised the State government over Odisha's poor performance in comparison to most other states of the country.
Odisha secured the 25th rank in SDG Indian Index among all the states with a composite score of 51 out of 100.
The index covers 13 of the 17 sustainable development goals, including healthcare, gender equality, clean energy, infrastructure, education, peace and building strong and accountable institutions. The value of the score indicates the average performance of the state/UT towards achieving the 13 SDGs and their respective targets by 2030.
Following the release of the report, BJP general secretary Prithviraj Harichandan said the rate of economic growth in Odisha is much below than expected.
“The rate of economic growth has not been achieved in Odisha the way it should have been made. It has already been proved that the state government cannot ensure sustainable and long-term development," Harichandan said.
The BJP general secretary further added that Odisha needs a change in leadership to achieve the desired level of development under the guidance of PM NarendraModi.
Similarly, toeing the line of the saffron party, Congress too criticised the ruling-BJD over the report.
“Several states used to stay below Odisha in the rankings released earlier but now in the name of development the government has made Odisha one of the poorest States in the country. I hope that the people of Odisha will reject this government in the next elections,” OPCC President NiranjanPatnaik said.
However, ruling BJD refuted the charges levelled by the Opposition.
“The Opposition should have clear reason for their criticism as Odisha is an aspiring State and is on the way of performing better according to the report,” BJD spokesperson Sasmit Patra said.