According to reports, 15 persons went missing after the landslide out of which 7 bodies were recovered today. The deaths have been confirmed by Kainpur PEO and the sarpanch.
Meanwhile, body of a person among the two missing in Lakshmipur has been recovered while 2 persons are reportedly missing from Gandahati and Lailai areas of the district following cyclone Titli.
"Our reports show that Gajapati district has witnessed the maximum damage following cyclone Titli. CM has said that he will personally take stock of the situation and will alert the district administration to take necessary steps henceforth," said Chief Secretary, Aditya Prasad Padhi.
Special Relief Commissioner's (SRC) office said 1,12,931 people were still lodged in 854 relief camps of the state and cooked food was being provided to the inmates.
Altogether 3,60,132 people had taken refuge in 1,614 relief camps of the state during the natural calamities, SRC sources said.
"We are not forcing anyone to leave the camps. Wherever there is an improvement, people are returning to their villages on their own," an SRC official said.
Later in the day today, SRC asked collectors to enquire into all cases of alleged deaths and ensure ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased within 3 days following due procedure.
(With PTI Inputs)
ECI approved the plan to add 200 new buses to the existing fleet of 110 city buses. The new fleet will have 50 AC buses.
The AC and non-AC buses on a route will run alternatively one after the other, said Kumar.
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Energy Secretary, Hemant Kumar Sharma in a Power distribution review meeting chaired by the Chief Secretary informed that a detailed project report (DPR) was prepared to electrify 3,474 un-electrified villages in the year 2014-15. So far 3,150 villages have been connected with power supply.
Padhi instructed the energy department to electrify all the rest 324 villages within December 2017.
Moreover, discussions during the meeting revealed that Odisha has achieved 5 percent reduction in Aggregate Technical and Commercial (AT&C) loss in low tension sector during the year 2016-17. The loss reduction during the first four months has been more than 1.5 per cent in comparison to the corresponding period of the last year, informed Sharma.
Padhi directed the discoms (power distribution companies) to achieve 7 percent reduction in AT & C loss in the current year.
Sharma also gave details of various measures taken for strengthening power supply system and performance in billing and collections.
He said billing and collection has improved after introduction of performance based incentive system. Mobile-phone-based billing system, receiving payment of power bills at post offices, installation of POS machines in counters of all discoms and digital payment gateways are a few initiatives taken to improve performance.
Furthermore, ten performance, loss reduction and evaluation indicators were also identified in the meeting based on the experience of earlier operations.
While OAS posts have been increased from 1,550 to 1,700, the number of OFS posts have increased from 723 to 800, informed Chief Secretary, Aditya Prasad Padhi.
The Cabinet meeting which was chaired by Naveen Patnaik today also gave its nod to set up a Handlooms and Handicrafts development and promotion council to boost industry’s growth and ensure welfare of artisans. The government will provide Rs 20 crore during the current financial year to the council.
"The council would assess the impact of various schemes and programmes being implemented for weavers, artisans and advise the government in framing of policies for the handloom and handicraft sectors," said Padhi.
The Cabinet also decided to upgrade the cadres of Odisha Motor Vehicle Department. From now on, a Senior Class I officer will be appointed as Regional Transport Officer (RTO) and Junior Class I officer will be appointed as Motor Vehicle Inspector (MVI).
Besides, the Cabinet also cleared the Odisha Fire Prevention and Fire Safety Rules 2017.
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The development of railways is the duty of the Centre, but the State Government provided financial support to expedite the project work. It does not mean that Odisha will provide funds for all projects, Padhi mentioned in his letter.
The State Government had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with East Coast Railway (ECoR) in October last year in which the former had agreed to provide 25 percent project construction cost and 25 percent land acquisition cost. But now the Indian Railways is demanding that the State should provide 100 percent funds for land acquisition on grounds of loss in revenue due to decline in mining and transportation.
The State Government has termed it as an open defiance of the MoU.
Addressing the Chairman of Railway Board AK Mittal, Padhi wrote, “I would request you to instruct your officials to honour the MoU signed between both the Governments and expedite work for this project in the overall interest of the country.”
Talking to media persons, Padhi said, “They wrote to us in June saying that Odisha Government should bear complete land acquisition cost. Therefore we requested that as an MoU was signed in presence of Odisha CM and Railway Minister, they should stick to it.”
A broad gauge rail line of 130 kilometres from Jeypore to Malkangiri will be set up under the project. The main intention behind it was socio-economic development of the backward and Maoists affected zone.
An outlay of Rs 79 crore for the project had been made in the Railway Budget 2016-17. But it is pending since last one year due to the confrontation between the State and Indian Railways.
It was decided at the meeting that the houses would be constructed in three categories, on the own lands of the beneficiaries.
Besides, the government would also provide housing to those who don’t have their own land, at low cost.
Padhi informed, the championship will have 42 events with 650 athletes and 1100 officials from 45 countries participating in it.
A management committee along with 13 sub-committees have been constituted to take care of all arrangements, added Padhi.
It may be mentioned that the mega sports event of athletics will be held for the first time in Kalinga Stadium here. AFI President Adille J Sumariwalla had personally inspected the facilities and infrastructure at the stadium last month before giving a green signal to conduct the event here.
Padhi, heading a review meeting here, had a discussion with all the Collectors by means of video conferencing. He informed that water observers will be appointed, to monitor the bore wells and pipeline work, at district and state level. Report on drinking water issues will be submitted by the water observers to the State Government.
Besides, reports published or broadcasted by various mass media will also be given importance. Control rooms will be opened at each district to confirm the mass media reports and resolve the issues within 48 hours.
Talking to media persons he said, "We are supplying water to 38,000 habitations in State by means of piped water facility and more than four lakh tube wells are also installed. It will be ensured that they are functioning properly; their operation and maintenance will be monitored. A control rooms will be formed in each district to inspect the reports of electronic and print media and steps will be taken to sort out the press reports within 48 hours."
Padhi instructed all District Collectors that if the 1712 liquor shops along the National and State Highways are not shifted within the given deadline, they will be permanently closed from April 1.
Briefing media persons, the Chief Secretary said, “From April 1, nearly 1700 liquor shops must be shifted 500 metres away from National and State Highways. Keeping in view of that we have instructed the Collectors to send notice to the liquor shop owners to shift their shop location.”
Notably, as per the directive of the Supreme Court, liquor shops will be shifted to beyond 500 metres from all National Highways and State Highways in Odisha.
Earlier on January, Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Excise, Bishnupada Sethi had informed, “At present, there are over 3900 liquor shops along the National Highways and State Highways in Odisha of which more than 1700 have come up within the identified zones.”
He had said that there would be a loss of Excise revenue to the tune of Rs 1100 crore per annum if these liquor shops are shifted from the identified zones.
“The fiscal deficit is well within the permissible limit of 3.5 percent of GSDP. The present level of fiscal deficit is around 2 percent of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP). The debt and GSDP ratio of the State is well below the permissible limit of 25 percent with present level at 14 percent. The tax and GSDP ratio is at 5.3 percent while the state’s own revenue and GSDP ratio is more than 7 percent,” Padhi told media persons after presiding over the annual review meeting of the Finance department at the State Secretariat here.
The major activities of the department like budget management, treasury management, loan & guarantee management, pension policy and pension disbursement, fiscal policy management, audit of local fund institutions, coordination with the Centre, RBI and Accountant General, coordination with banks, financial institutions and external donor agencies etc were reviewed in the meeting.
The Chief Secretary congratulated the department for reform measures already implemented and asked the officials to scale up such activities during the coming financial year.
The review revealed that Odisha has moved to online system of RBI named e-Kuber for all receipts and payments and has integrated it with IFMS. The facility for online submission of pension papers has also been provided in IFMS. The facility of online sanction of around 14 services including pension, provident fund etc have also been incorporated in IFMS platform. E-Transfer of PL accounts across treasuries has been made operational.
Principal Secretary, Finance, Tukihkant Pandey informed that the next step would be to leverage the system for online generation of cash book.
Padhi said the Finance department has performed well in the last fiscal year. The department has rolled out a set of reform measures for which Odisha has become a leading state in implementation of IFMS, PFMS and budget management. The department has also performed well in major fiscal indicators, he added.
Available data show that revenue from VAT & CST collected through Finance dept. has increased by 13.3 percent up to December 31 of the current fiscal year (2016-17) in comparison to the same period of the last fiscal excluding the revenue withheld by IOCL. The total collection from VAT & CST up to December, 2016 has been Rs 8759 crore.
The capital outlay and GSDP achievement till November, 2016 has been around 4 percent. The Finance department has implemented many institutional reforms. The integrated financial management system (IFMS) of Odisha has been nominated for award by a National Agency CSI-Nihilent. The prize would be received on January 27 at Coimbatore.
The budget speeches of 80 years from 1936-37 have been digitized and made available in the department website. The state project management unit (PMU) has been functionalized with a team of technical experts. Odisha is now one among nine leading states in the country with regard to roll out of Public Financial Management System (PFMS). The state has also received Best State Award-2016 for subscriber’s record maintenance in National Pension Scheme (NPS).
Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has decided to shift all liquor shops which have come up within 500 metres from the National Highways and State Highways, by April 1 this year.
A decision to this effect was taken at a high level review meeting presided over by Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi at the State Secretariat here today.
Talking to media persons after the meeting, the Chief Secretary said as per the directive of the Supreme Court, liquor shops will be shifted to beyond 500 metres from all National Highways and State Highways in Odisha. The decision of the apex court will be implemented from April 1 this year.
“The meeting discussed about the implementation of the apex court order and identification of liquor shops. As it is yet to be decided on which parameters the liquor shops would be shifted, it was decided that the shifting would be done only after the norms to calculate 500 metres from the National Highways and State Highways are fixed,” he added.
Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Excise, Bishnupada Sethi said not only liquor shops but also other shops and hotels which have come up within 500 metres from the National Highways and State Highways will either be closed or shifted.
“At present, there are over 3900 liquor shops along the National Highways and State Highways in Odisha of which more than 1700 have come up within the identified zones. As per our estimate, there would be a loss of Excise revenue to the tune of Rs 1100 crore per annum if these liquor shops are shifted from the identified zones,” he pointed out.
Talking to media persons after the meeting, chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi said the Cabinet decided to name all Lift Irrigation (LI) projects after eminent female freedom fighter Parbati Giri, nicknamed as Mother Teresa of Western Odisha.
He said the upcoming LI projects in the state would come up at a cost of Rs 7600 crore of which the cabinet approved 13 projects. Of the 13 projects 8 LI projects would come up in eight block in Mayurbhanj district and one project for one block in Keonjhar district.
Besides, the Cabinet also approved mega sanitation project for Rourkela city, Padhi said.
He also said the Cabinet decided to extend Value Added Tax (VAT) relaxation on dal till March 31 next year.
Notably, the State Cabinet had approved a proposal to reduce VAT on pulses from 5 percent to 1 percent on June 28 this year.
Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi informed this after a preparatory meeting held at Secretariat here today.
A total 280 stalls will be set up at the conclave, to be organised under the joint aegis of the Government of Odisha and the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP), Government of India. The Chief Secretary said agriculture, food processing, petroleum industry would to be given focus at the three-day meet.
Padhi further said new policy for MSMEs, textile and handloom industries would be brought out soon. Sources said several projects will be showcased at the event to lure investments in various sectors.
Briefing media persons after the meeting, chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi said the policy would chart a road map to place Odisha among the top three investment destinations in the country by 2020.
The state government has planned to set up 1000 start-ups in five years.
Padhi said a Start-up Capital Infrastructure Fund (up to Rs 25 crore) would be provided by the state government to the Department of MSME through budgetary provision to provide monthly assistance to young entrepreneurs.
The state government in December last year had announced that it would formulate a start-up policy with an objective to set up 1000 start-ups in the state in five years.
The Odisha Start-up Policy (OSP), 2016, will be unveiled by the chief minister at an investors meet in Bengaluru on August 26.
The OSP envisages Odisha being among the top three start-up hubs in the country by 2020 through strategic partnerships, conducive ecosystem, investments and policy intervention.
"The policy will be implemented within five years and comprises of three Is— Institutions, Industry and Incubation," the chief secretary said.
The implementation of the policy would be monitored by a Startup Council headed by the Chief Secretary and a Review Committee headed by Principal Secretary MSME, he said.
The policy envisages usher in an innovative start-up ecosystem through creation of world class incubation centres, funding and supporting incentives structure at par with other states.
The State Cabinet also approved a proposal for formation of a Higher Education Council with the Higher Education minister as its chairperson.
Padhi said a new legislation would be made to establish a Council for Higher Education to look after the higher education in the state. “The Council, which has already been formed by the state government, will be given statutory backing through legislation. The main purpose of setting up this Council is to access the funds from the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) of the ministry of Higher Education”, he added.
Talking about the constitution of the Council, Padhi said it will be headed by the Higher Education minister as its chairperson while the vice chairperson would be an educationist in the rank of professor with relevant experience. “The Council will have 15 members including three vice chancellors while the remaining members having thorough experience on higher education will be appointed. The Council will act as an overarching body to advise the government about various aspects of higher education. This system, which is presently in place in seven states, will come into force in Odisha after a bill to this effect is passed in the State Assembly”, he noted.
The Cabinet also approved the GST Bill of the Centre and decided to convene a special session of the State Assembly on September 1 to ratify the GST Constitutional Amendment Bill.
There is provision that the bill should be ratified by at least 50 percent of the states of India by September 8, Padhi added.
Keeping the ensuing Nuakhai festival in Western Odisha, the Cabinet decided to defer the beginning of the monsoon session of the State Assembly from September 7 to September 21.
“In its report, the NCST had observed that the incident was not justified. Acting on the report of the Commission, the Odisha government had constituted a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT). The SIT, which is slated to submit its report to the Commission in three months, has already completed one and a half months of its investigation so far. The Commission will review the SIT report thoroughly,” NCST chairperson Rameswar Oraon told media persons after a meeting with chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi at the State Secretariat here today.
On the other hand, Oraon expressed satisfaction over the action taken by the state government after the incident.
“I must say that the state government has made satisfactory progress in the action it has taken after the shocking incident,” he pointed out.
Notably, three days after the incident, chief minister Naveen Patnaik annoucned on on July 11 the formation of an SIT to ensure a thorough and impartial probe into the incident. Acting on the directive of the Home department, Director General of Police (DGP) KB Singh had constituted a six-member SIT on July 13 with Gurudas Kundu, SP, HRPC as the Investigating Officer (IO) and Ramachandra Gouda, Sadananda Guha, A. Patnaik, Nirupama Sethy and Bijay Bal as the other members.
Talking about the death of 19 children of Juang tribal community in Nagada village in Jajpur district due to malnutrition, Oraon said this is not the only case in the country. Such incidents have been reported from other states as well, he said adding measures are ebing taken to ensure that no child dies of malnutrition.
“I told the chief secretary that the Centre has taken up the matter seriously and will make sincere efforts to ensure that no such incidents happen in future,” he informed.
The NCST chairman also had a meeting with the chief secretary on the action taken report (ATR) of the state government for rehabilitation of the displaced oustees of the Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL)’s Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) project.
Talking to media persons at the State Secretariat here today, chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi said a meeting between the Odisha government and Chhattisgarh government over Mahanadi issue was held in New Delhi on July 29 in which the latter had assured to give the details of the projects which have been completed and which are underway within 15 days.
“The Odisha government had sought details from Chhattisgarh about monthly utilisation of water from completed projects and under construction projects which are in the pipeline. Besides, the state government had also sought detailed reports on the amount of water the neighbouring state would require from these projects in future for private, industrial and thermal power use. Though the Chhattisgarh government had assured us to give the detailed information within 15 days of the meeting, we are yet to receive any information till date. We have sent a reminder to the Chhattisgarh government on this matter and informed the Central Water Commission (CWC) accordingly,” Padhi said.
“We need official data from the Chhattisgarh government so that the impact assessment on the use of water can be done properly. After we get the data, our engineering wing will do a thorough analysis. In fact, we have been reviewing the data received from different sources. But we need official data from the Chhattisgarh government. It does not matter whether the Chhattisgarh government provides us the data or the Centre provides the data after collecting it from the Chhattisgarh government. Once we get these official data, we will be able to make a correct assessment after which we will decide our own strategy to counter this issue,” Water Resources secretary Pradeep Jena told the media today.
On the other hand, the BJD has decided to submit an interim report on its recent visit to Chhattisgarh.
“During the visit of the BJD delegation, the Chhattisgarh government had promised us to provide detailed information we had sought about the projects. But as it has not provided us any information so far, we have decided to submit an interim report to the chief minister,” School and Mass Education minister Debi Prasad Mishra said.
He also said for a complete report, BJD will request the Congress to provide the data it had collected during its visit to Chhattisgarh. “Apart from this, we will also ask some NGOs, which had visited Chhattisgarh recently, for info,” he added.
Meanwhile, spurred by the success of the Odisha bandh, the Congress has prepared a road map to stage a series of agitations across the state on the Mahanadi issue.
“May be we can stage agitation at the panchayat level or block level. We have also planned a mass agitation along the Mahanadi basin. We are ready to discharge our duty as an Opposition party,” PCC spokesperson Sarat Rout said.
On the other hand, the BJP has decided to come up with a white paper on Mahanadi issue. “If the state government is reluctant to release a white paper on Mahanadi, BJP will release a white paper basing on the information it has and reveal the truth to the people of Odisha,” BJP spokesperson Sajjan Sharma said in a press briefing here today.
Briefing media persons after a high level review meeting of the Puri-Konark Development Authority (PKDA) presided over by chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi at the State Secretariat this afternoon, Puri collector Arvind Agrawal said a team of technical experts of the Water Resources department will visit Puri very soon and take necessary steps to check the erosion of the shoreline at Swarga Dwara.
"The team will try to stop the ingress of sea water so that it does not enter into the town," Agarwal said.
Puri MLA Maheswar Mohanty has made a case for iron sheet piling to stop sea waves from encroaching into land.
“We are trying to block the sea water by putting up iron sheet piling along the shoreline near Swarga Dwara. Though the work will take some time, we are taking steps in this regard," Mohanty told the media persons in Puri today.
Even as denizens of Puri town are living in dread after surging sea waves lashed the shore threatening Swarga Dwara, saline water ingress from the Chilika lake has inundated hundreds of acres of paddy crops in 15 villages in the periphery of Asia's largest brackish water lake.
Among the villages where paddy crops have been inundated by saline water are Sipakuda, Banamalipur and Alupatana villages in Brahmagiri block.
The villagers have alleged that a ring embankment built long time back has weakened due to poor maintenance work. Due to this, a portion of the embankment was swept away in the devastating Cyclone Phailin in October, 2013. As a result, saline water from the lake entered the villages and swept away houses. Since then, the district administration has not taken any steps to repair the breached portion of the embankment, they alleged.
“The district administration is aware of the plight of the villagers and it will take a decision for repair of the breached embankment very soon,” said Puri sub collector.
"The Corporation will undertake scientific mineral exploration of ore-bearing virgin areas to at least G2 level (general exploration) for facilitating the auction of mineral blocks,” chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi told reporters after the meeting.
He said the Corporation, which will be a subsidiary of Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC), can also take up exploration work on behalf of mining leaseholders and other organisations.
The initial paid-up capital of the corporation is expected to be Rs 5 crore and the total authorised capital Rs 20 crore, he added.
The Cabinet also decided to amend the Industrial Policy Resolution (IPR)-2015, making provision to allow industries to avail land at the IPR rate instead of the prevailing benchmark value of land by the Revenue department.
Apart from this, land registration, ground rent and cess will be fixed at the rate of IPR-2015 instead of the rate fixed by the Revenue department, Padhi pointed out.
The Cabinet also approved a proposal of the Panchayati Raj department for amendment to Odisha Gram Panchayat Act, 1964 for term rotation of the Sarpanches.
“The state government had earlier brought an amendment to the Act wherein it had reduced the two-term reservation provision for Ward members, Panchayat Samiti members, Zilla Parishad members etc. to one term. But the Sarpanches were not brought under the provision in the amended Act. Taking this into consideration, the Cabinet has approved amendment to this Act to include the Sarpanches,” Padhi said.
Giving details of the amendment, he said the rotation of reservation category for the Sarpanches will be changed after the completion of their five-year term. For instance, a panchayat reserved for a Scheduled Caste candidate in the present term will be reserved for other categories like Scheduled Tribe or General in the next term.
"The fresh amendment to the Act will be made through an ordinance considering the ensuing Panchayat elections in the state the process for which has already started,” the chief secretary added.
The Cabinet also approved the Odisha Public Library Rules framed under the Odisha Public Library Act to establish a network of public libraries in the state and the appoint the Director Culture as the Director for the development of these libraries in future.
It also approved amendment to Odisha Prosecution Service Rules to ensure a mandatory 3 percent reservation for persons with disability for recruitment as assistant public prosecutors.
Besides, it also gave approval for amendment to Odisha Official Language Act, 1954. “Though the Act was made in 1954, there was no provision of rules for this Act. In May this year, the chief minister had asked the State Cabinet to discuss the Act. Later, the state government had promulgated an ordinance for amendment to the Act for making of rules. The ordinance in the meanwhile, has been approved by the Governor and the Law department is working out the rules for this Act, which will be announced very soon,” Padhi said.
The Cabinet also cleared the proposal for amendment to the Odisha Subordinate Fodder Service Rules, 2012 in which some changes have been made in the recruitment and conditions of the services of the subordinate officials of the Veterinary department.
Talking to media persons after the meeting, chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi said the the state government had brought in comprehensive amendment to the Odisha Electricity (Duty) Act, originally formulated in 1961, in 1986. However, after the Indian Electricity Act 2003 came into effect, there was a need for more changes in the Act.
He said the State Cabinet had earlier passed the amendment to the Act and had tabled it in the State Assembly. “But as revenue implications are involved in the Act, we have passed it in today’s Cabinet meeting as an ordinance. The amendment will be implemented after approval from the governor,” Padhi said.
He said the state government has set a target for collection of additional revenue of Rs 90 crore per annum (Rs 7.5 crore per month) following the amendment to the Act. Since four months of the current fiscal have already passed, the revised revenue target for the remaining eight months of the current financial year would be Rs 60 crore.
The chief secretary further said as per the new amendment to the Act, a ceiling of Rs 2 has been kept for consumption of Captive Power Plants (CPPs) and Independent Power Producers (IPPs) while a provision for an ad valorem of 15% to the Electricity Duty has also been made. However, there is no change in the rate for domestic consumption as the ceiling has been fixed at 40 paise per unit”, Padhi informed.
He also said the charge for Electricity Duty on generator set has been extended from 10 kva to 50 kva capacity.
By virtue of another amendment to the Act, consumers will now have a three-tier dispute resolution mechanism if they find there is any anomaly in the power tariff.
Approving the projects at the SLSWCA meeting, chief secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi directed the concerned departments to facilitate early take-off of these projects by expediting the process for various compliances.
Briefing newsmen after the meeting, General Manager, IPICOL, Kalyan Mohanty said the committee approved the project proposal of M/S Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd for expansion of its non-alcoholic plant at Industrial estate, Khurda with a total investment of Rs 500 crore. This would generate employment for 348 persons.
The second approved project was M/S P&A Bottlers Ltd which would set up a 2.50 lakh hectolitre capacity brewery at Balarampur in Dhenkanal district with an investment of Rs 102 crore. The proposed brewery would generate employment for 116 persons.
The third project to receive approval today was M/S Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) which would set up a Common User Facility Centre at Dhutra in Jharsuguda district for storage of petroleum products with an investment of Rs 272 crore. This unit would provide employment to around 166 persons.
Mohanty said the chief secretary also directed the district collectors to conduct District Level Single Window Committee (DLSWC) meetings regularly and plan for development of small and medium industrial enterprises in the district.
Principal Secretary, Industry Sanjeeb Chopra presented the details of the investment proposals and outlined the issues for discussion.
The meeting also reviewed various projects under State projects Monitoring Group (SPMG). These projects include Gandhamardan-B mining project of the Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC), Daitari Mining project of OMC, South Kaliapani Mining project of OMC, construction of 220 KV Transmission Line from Laxmipur to Damonjodi Aditya Almunium Project, approach road to RSB Transmission Pvt Ltd., establishment of railway siding in Jalpaposhi village of Keonjhar district by Bhusan Steel Ltd, construction of Odisha Power Generation Corporation (OPGC) ash pond in Jharsuguda district, construction of railway corridor in Jharsuguda and Sundargarh districts, construction of a fly-over at Info-valley and Khandagiri crossings in Bhubaneswar, widening of the road from Mendhasala to Sea Food Park at Deras, development of an aluminum park at Angul and Capital Region Improvement of Power System project etc.
Besides, issues relating to land acquisition, forest diversion, distribution of compensation, peripheral development activities etc were discussed and resolved in the meeting.
Considering the infrastructural need, social utility and environmental impact of the proposed projects, the Board approved the projects setting time lines for their completion.
The chief secretary advised the departments to mobilize the ULBs to avail and utilize this facility for enhancing their revenue sources and incentivize the better performing ULBs for encouraging other to follow the suit.
He also advised to promote eco-friendly projects like laying of road tops with the material produced from waste plastics. The Urban Development department was also asked to make appropriate waste treatment and disposal systems in the fish and meat markets.
Development Commissioner, R Balakrishnan , present in the meeting, stressed a model wet-market project proposal for replication in other ULBs. The model project should have centralized locker type facility for individual fish sellers. The maintenance of the markets including payment of power bills should be made by the user society of the concerned market, he pointed out.
The approved projects in the meeting included the proposal for establishment of two modern wet market at Unit-IV and Ghatikia in Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), setting up 56 vending zones by side of the road leading to Engineering school in Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC), construction of market complex at Ganesh Market in Udala NAC, construction of market complex at Patrapada in Sundargarh, development of sewerage system in east and west towns of Rourkela, improvement of water supply to greater Berhampur and augmentation of water supply to Gopalpur NAC.
The total estimated cost of these projects is Rs.905.19 crore out of which OUIDF would provide Rs 249.02 crore including loan component of Rs 126.81 crore and viable gap funding ( VGF) of Rs 122.21 crore.
The meeting also reviewed the progress of the projects approved earlier by the Board. Prominent among them were modern abattoir at Gadakana in BMC, sewerage system at Sambalpur, sewerage system at Rourkela, solid waste management project at Berhampur, affordable housing projects at Chandrasekharpur and Ghatikia in BMC, bulk water supply project for IIT, NISER, Infocity-II, Jatani and Khurda, water supply in Berhampur Municipal corporation, reclamation of 14 water bodies in Bhubaneswar, reclamation of three water bodies in Berhampur , fish markets at two locations in Sambalpur, reclamation of 7 water bodies in Sambalpur and regional municipal solid waste processing facility for Cuttack and Bhubaneswar.
The chief secretary directed to follow up the projects through field supervision and accomplish the mile stones set as per the time schedule.
Available data shows a total amount of Rs 383 crore has been disbursed from OUIDF as loan and VGF against these projects.
He also directed officials to fix realistic target for each project and accomplish it within the time schedule.
Creation of irrigation potential for additional 10 lakh hectares has been brought to the focus area of the department. Chief Secretary directed to achieve the target within the financial year 2018-19.
Presiding over a review meeting of the department, Padhi made a case for better water use efficiency and maximization of the use of irrigation potential already created.
Available data shows Odisha at present has utilizable water resources of around 83.46 billion cubic metres (BCM) out of which 24.24 BCM is in present use. Irrigation potential has been created for 33.12 lakh hectares.
The department has taken up various projects for creation of irrigation facility for additional 10 lakh hectares. It has been planned to irrigate 2.41 lakh hectares through mega lift scheme for which 103 projects have been taken up with an estimated cost of Rs 4024 crores. Besides, 20 major and medium irrigation projects have been taken up for creation irrigation potential for of 4.37 lakh hectares with estimated cost of Rs 18,404 crore .
The meeting decided to complete Upper Indravati extension, Titilagarh project by end of 2015-16 , Rukura-Manjore-Bahghalati project by 2016-17, Lower Indravati Mahendratanaya Project by 2017-18 and Subarnarekha-Kanpur-Anadapur Barrage-Telengiri-Hadua project by 2018-19.
The meeting also revealed that the deep bore well scheme has been taken up for creation of irrigation potential over 0.60 lakh hectares. By now, about 12,000 beneficiaries have deposited Rs 20,000 each towards their 10% share money.
It may be mentioned that the state government has been providing 90% of the cost of each deep bore well from its own resources. Tenders have already been floated for digging of bore wells and the work will be completed as per the schedule. Around 10,000 check dams have been taken up for creating additional irrigation potential. So far 7,483 check dams have been completed and protective irrigation has been provided to 37,362 hectares during 2015 khariff season.
Apart from this, construction of 4000 Community Lift Irrigation Points (LIPs) has been taken up for creating irrigation potential of 80,000 hectares.
The revival of defunct LIPs has been taken up on war footing. It has been targeted to revive 3917 defunct LIPs at an estimated cost of Rs 753.38 crore.
The department has successfully grounded the Odisha Community Tank Management Project (OCTMP) as a result of which cropping intensity has increased from 1.21 % to 1.42% per hectare.
The State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) headed by Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi approved the project proposals of Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd, North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Limited and Ramky Enviro Engineers Ltd.
The Authority approved the proposal of Chettinad Cement Corporation to set up a two million tonne per annum cement factory at Kalinganagar in Jajpur district. The company would invest Rs 232 crore in the project while 385 people would get direct employment, said an official.
The government also approved the 200 MW solar project of North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Ltd. It would invest Rs 945 crore in the project, said the official. A total of 205 people would get employment in the project, he added.
The proposal of Ramky Enviro Engineers Ltd to set up an industrial waste treatment, storage and disposal plant was also approved. The company will invest Rs 149 crore and engage 75 people in the plant to be set up at Jharsuguda.
The waste management company has already set up a treatment, storage and disposal facility at Jajpur.
It was finalised at a meeting of the committee for protection and conservation of Olive Ridley sea turtles chaired by Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi here.
Padhi directed the departments of Fishery, Forest and Marine police to operate in close coordination and ensure strict enforcement of the conservation rules.
He also advised the concerned departments not to harass the traditional fishermen unnecessarily during the ban period.
As Olive Ridley turtles arrive every year during winter for mass nesting along the Odisha sea coast, the government banned fishing along its coast for the next seven months. The ban will be in force from November 1 to May 31 next year.
The Coast Guard was requested to have real-time intelligence sharing with the departments about any illegal fishing. Dhamara, Gopalpur, and Paradeep port trusts were requested to provide vessels for patrolling in their respective coasts.
Also read: Fishing ban to save Olive Ridley sea turtles
Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife) Sidhant Das said, "This year two high-speed boats have been procured for patrolling along the coast. These boats can run at 30 km per hour and can catch illegal fishermen in the sea".
Das added that during the current nesting season, a total of 59 camps, both onshore and offshore, would be put up at different places along the coast for detection of illegal fishing.
"We would take the cooperation of the local NGOs, community-based organisations and traditional fishermen. Fisheries and Animal Resource department was requested to regulate fishing activities for traditional fishermen as per the existing rules", added Das.
The proposed corridor would be implemented under the joint aegis of the Union and Odisha governments and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the state government said in a release.
A conceptual development plan for the first stage would be prepared by March 2017, the release added.
A meeting was held between senior state officials and ADB team under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi here on Friday.
The proposal for Odisha's inclusion in the ECEC and the action plan to carry forward the project was discussed in the meeting.
It was decided that the Industry Secretary and the Chairman-cum-Managing Director of IDCO would be the nodal officers and the industry department would be the nodal department for the project
The corridor would link Odisha with Global Industrial Corridor and Global Value Chain, said the release.
Also read: Pradhan seeks industrial corridor in Odisha
Notably, the state government and Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan were demanding Odisha's inclusion in the corridor that would facilitate the development of the state.
The proposed project would be India's first coastal corridor. It would cover approximately 1,700 km of coastline and connect six major ports and three of India's deepest draught ports.
The corridor would also connect mineral-rich hinterland having 86 per cent of coal reserves, 82 per cent of iron reserves, 70 per cent of bauxite reserves and 40 per cent of natural gas reserves, said the release.
It would boost the industrial activities in Odisha more particularly in auto, electronics, petrochemicals, petroleum, iron, steel, food processing, textiles, naval shipyards, defence and space exploration.
Also read: ADB lends $120 mn for improving irrigation in Odisha
The project would have two basic dimensions -- investments for infrastructure development and investments for node-centric development.
The meeting decided that the technical teams of the ADB would make assessment of land availability, clearance from coastal areas, flood line, forest area, other restricted areas, connectivity with highways, rail network, proximity to ports, and airports.
Energy Secretary R.K. Verma said of 47,677 villages in the state as per the 2011 census, around 45,236 villages constituting around 96 per cent have got power connectivity by June 30.
Taking a review meeting over rural electrification, Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi directed to cover the villages and hamlets in saturation mode and in a time-bound manner.
"Out of the balance 2,441 villages, 541 have been identified as uninhabited villages. Detailed action plan has been prepared to cover rest of the villages," said Verma.
The rural electrification work has been allocated to agencies like PGCIL, OPTCL, OREDA and NTPC.
In the meanwhile, preparatory steps like detail survey, preparation of the projects and bidding have been expedited.
Odisha Renewable Energy Development Agency (OREDA) has targeted to complete electrification of 275 villages by November this year. Out of this, 198 villages would be connected through micro-grid, and 76 would be covered through stand-alone solar projects, said an official.
Around 12,000 households would be benefited through this scheme.
The issues relating to forest and wildlife clearances were discussed and resolved in the meeting.
Notably, the state government has targeted to complete the electrification work by October-November, 2016. Access to electricity across the country has been targeted to be accomplished by March 2017 by Union government.
The State units of BJP and the Congress alleged that such mismatch and discrepancies in the reports released at regular intervals have proved that the ruling-BJD is hiding the truth from the people of the State to save itself.
It is worth mentioning that a report published on Monday morning revealed that 3,60,132 persons were evacuated and sheltered in 1614 relief centres. However, district-wise details of persons evacuated only added up to 1,13,224 persons. However, another report released in the same day evening showed that 3,60,353 persons were evacuated. Today morning, another report was published by the SRC which showed that a total of 3,60, 131 persons were evacuated. Interestingly, there was also a mismatch in the number of relief centres at 1612.
"The government is giving false reports. Why is the number of evacuated persons increasing every day? Evacuation should have been done on the same day of the cyclone? Without any evacuation, the State government is just making fake bills," alleged State BJP spokesperson, Golak Mohapatra.
All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary, Sarat Rout also accused the government of providing false data adding that the whole machinery is just engaged in appeasing Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik.
He further said, "The way super cyclone of 1999 unseated the Congress government from power in the State, Cyclone Titli will result in same fate for the Naveen Patnaik government in 2019 general polls."
However, Food Supplies minister Surya Narayan Patro rubbished the allegations and taking a jibe at both the national parties said: "We are not appearing for an exam here so that we have to make the figures correct. Our reports are based on information from the ground."
Meanwhile, the State government today accepted that 26 persons have so far lost their lives in different districts due to the natural calamity which affected a total of 57 lakh people across 16 districts of the State.
Addressing a presser in Bhubaneswar, Special Relief Commissioner Bishnupada Sethi informed that 1.48 lakh hectare of paddy crops and 65,000 hectare of non-paddy crops were destroyed in the cyclone and subsequent flooding.
Behera replaced his batch mate Aditya Prasad Padhi who will continue to work as the additional chief secretary to Chief Minister.
1981 batch officer Ashok Kumar Tripathy has been named as the new member Board of Revenue. He will additionally oversee Gopabandhu Academy of Administration.
R Balakrishnan, an officer of 1984 batch, has been appointed as the new additional chief secretary, finance department in place of U N Behera.
Gagan Kumar Dhal, secretary of the higher education department, has been given additional charge as the CMD of the state owned Industrial Promotion of Infrastructure Corporation Limited (IPICOL).
1997 batch officer Sanjeeb Kumar Mishra has been appointed as the new special Resident Commissioner and will posted at Delhi.
Pramod Kumar Mehrada has been given additional charge of Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC) Southern Division. He is now RDC, Northern Division.
Odisha Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi said all the beneficiaries of KALIA scheme will be covered under the PM-KISAN programme. In the first phase, a list of 12.45 lakh small and marginal farmers will be given to the Centre for the PM-KISAN programme.
“The small and marginal farmers, who have been included in the first phase of the KALIA scheme, will be covered under the PM-KISAN programme,” said Padhi.
“A decision has been taken by the State government to join the PM- KISAN programme. In the first phase, KALIA beneficiaries will be included and data of these small and marginal farmers will be uploaded,” said Saurabh Garg, Agriculture department secretary.
Other small and marginal farmers will be included in the State-sponsored KALIA scheme and later in the PM-KISAN scheme in phases, Garg further stated.
PM Modi will formally inaugurate the PM-KISAN scheme during a two-day farmers’ conclave at Gorakhpur on February 24. With its launch, the Central government will release Rs 2000 to each beneficiary through direct benefit transfer mode. The scheme promises Rs 6,000 per annum in three equal instalments to small and marginal farmers with land holding up to two hectares.
Meanwhile, the State government transferred Rs 700 crore to the bank accounts of over 14 lakh beneficiaries in the second phase of KALIA scheme at a programme in Bargarh.
After holding discussions with the Union Cabinet Secretary, PK Sinha via video conferencing, Padhi told mediapersons that the state government is laying emphasis on mobile connectivity and power supply restoration.
"We are emphasising mostly on two things - mobile connectivity and electricity - due to which the relief work is getting hampered in the cyclone affected areas. We have decided to bring around 5000 skilled workers from Andhra, Telangana and West Bengal," said the Chief Secretary adding that the electricity poles will be procured from Durgapur-based SAIL factory.
"The devastating cyclone Fani claimed three lives in Kendrapara, however, about 1.17 lakh people were evacuated successfully to safer places in the district. Till date, 80% electricity has been restored in the district and we will achieve full restoration within two days," said Padhi.
"Around 240 water supply units out of 277 in different villages of the district are in working condition. The crop damage in the districts is being assessed and the victims will receive subsidies and compensation," added Padhi.
The Chief Secretary also reviewed the post cyclone situation in Jagatsinghpur district and said "Relief distribution will continue till May 11 and electricity restoration to every block office will be completed by May 12."
The State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) held under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Aditya Prasad Padhi accorded in-principle approval to the projects.
The proposals approved by the SLSWCA were from different sectors such as food processing, plastic, tourism, logistics and metal.
Supreme Industries Ltd, a market leader in India's plastic industry, proposed to set up a manufacturing unit in Khordha district for production of plastic pipes, PVC water tanks and allied products with an investment of Rs 151.30 crore.
The project will create job opportunities for 320 persons, an official said.
Mayfair Hotels and Resort Ltd has proposed to set up a convention centre with a capacity of 4,000 in Bhubaneswar with an investment of Rs 300 crore and employment potential of 850 people.
The SLSWCA also cleared the proposal for two food processing units.
Thailand-based Intecqc Feed Co Ltd proposed to set up a shrimp feed manufacturing unit in Khordha with an investment of Rs 107.88 crore and employment potential of 205 people.
Explore Food Pvt Ltd will has proposed to set up a ready-to-eat snacks unit in Khordha with an investment of Rs 51.40 crore and employment potential of 194 persons, the official said.
The proposal of Bhagirathi Packaging Pvt Ltd, an associate company of Fogla Group, to set up polypropylene (PP) woven bags production unit in Bhadrak district with an investment of Rs 60.29 crore and employment potential of 500 people was also approved.
Chalah Infratech Pvt Ltd has proposed to set up a logistic park in Khordha district entailing an investment of Rs 99.80 crore and job opportunities for 234 people.
KAI International Pvt Ltd has proposed to set up an iron ore beneficiation and pellet plant in Sundargarh district with an investment of Rs 265.72 crore and employment potential of 475 people.
Significantly, post return to power in May 2014, CM Naveen Patnaik in July appointed Gokul Pati as new CS, despite the then incumbent CS Jugal Kishor Mohapatra having two-years left in the service. Incidentally, Mohapatra who took up the central posting as Secretary, Fertilisers and Chemicals, retired in 2016 as Secretary, Rural Development.
Since Elections 2019 were over, and post winning a mandate, the buzz doing round in power circles was Naveen will soon go for a mega re-jig in the bureaucratic platform. It proved prophetically true on the eve of 73rd Independence Day, when Padhi was appointed as SEC today.
The outgoing CS Padhi, a 1983-batch IAS officer, was due to retire from the services in February 2020. He took over as CS from Gokul Pati in 2015.
However, all eyes are now on who is going to occupy the high office, post Padhi's exit?
In fact, the norm is Chief Minister is the appointing authority of CS in a State. And it is only the seniormost IAS cadre officer who will occupy the high office. However, the precedent in Odisha is CM appoints one among the same seniority level officers to the post of CS.
In 2015, Naveen appointed Aditya Padhi as CS, despite Upendranath Behera being ahead of Padhi in seniority.
However, the twist in 2019 is, in the seniority ladder, all senior IAS officers are currently on deputation to Centre.
In the IAS seniority list, next to Padhi has been Injeti Srinivas (1983), who is now Union Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs. Similarly, Arun Kumar Panda (1984 batch), next in seniority line, is the Union Secretary Ministry of MSME. The 1985 batch IAS Odisha cadre, Upendra Kumar Singh, is Union Secretary, Water Resources. And 1985 batch IAS Surendra Nath Tripathi is now Secretary, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, Government of India.
Though the Agriculture Production Commissioner Gagan Kumar Dhal belongs to 1985-batch, he is due for retirement in January 2020.
As a consequence, the State's new CEO will be from the 1986 IAS batch. And Asit Tripathy, presently Development Commissioner-cum-Additional CS and Chief Administrator KBK, seems to be ahead in the race for the top post, since he is the seniormost in the 1986 batch.
Significantly, 1986- batch L N Gupta, Additional CS, senior to Tripathy, will be retiring this August.
In the last decade, no such senior rank IAS officer had quit the service just before the due retirement. The precedents observed over the years is Senior rank IAS officers had opted for VRS post appointment to some constitutional office.
In 2017, the then Additional Chief Secretary Upendranath Behera, who was overlooked in the appointment of the then Chief Secretary, had opted for VRS, when he was appointed as Chairman of Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC).
Significantly, Dhal calling it quits has come after the mega August 15 restructuring. In the big reshuffle, the State Government appointed IAS Pradipta Mohapatra to the post of Agriculture Production Commissioner - the very post that was being held by Gagan Dhal. Notably, the notification didn't allocate any new responsibility to Dhal.
Gagan Dhal, a 1985 batch IAS cadre, was the Agriculture Production Commissioner. He was in Level -17, which was equivalent to the Chief Secretary rank. The senior IAS was due to retire from service in January 2020. The State government has appointed Additional CS Asit Tripathy as the new Chief Secretary, who belongs to 1986-batch.
Though the Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC) has recommended the tenure of a CS to be fixed at 3-4 years, none of the states has accepted the recommendation. Even, in the current case, CS designate Asit Tripathy will retire from the service in December 2020.
As per the ARC, while the Chief Minister is the appointing authority, the three guiding factors are: Seniority, Service Record and CM's evaluation. But the grey area is there is no specified weightage for the seniority or service record. Reports suggest it is the CM's evaluation that overrides the other two norms.
This, observers view, has irked Dhal to put in his papers on Friday. It is important to mention that while some reports suggest Dhal has resigned, others term it as voluntary retirement. The suspense lingers as there has been no official word from Dhal over his quitting the service.
In his letter to the State government, it is learnt that Dhal has stated that inspired by late Biju Patnaik, he has decided not to draw the pension benefits post retirement. It is this statement that fuelled the apprehensions on Dhal’s quitting from the service as resignation. Because, as per Apex court judgment, all the benefits of retirement is applicable to one who opts for VRS but the same is not applicable to one who has resigned.
As per the norms of VRS, an IAS/IPS officer can apply for retirement prior to the age of superannuation, provided he/she has completed 20-years of service. The concerned official usually gives a three-month notice period. The new rule has stated that post the expiry of notice period, the concerned official's VRS will come into force even if the concerned government has not vetted the VRS.
A 1986-batch IAS officier, Tripathy was serving as the Development Commissioner-cum-Additional Chief Secretary and Chief Administrator KBK before being appointed as the Chief Secretary.
Tripathy became the 43rd chief secretary of the state after Padhi took voluntary retirement from service before joining as the State Election Commissioner.
#LISTEN to what Asit Tripathy says after assuming charge as #Odisha Chief Secretary today pic.twitter.com/n46UDJpUNY
— OTV (@otvnews) August 19, 2019
After taking over charge, Tripathy said that he would ensure that government files were speedily cleared.
The chief secretary said he believed in consuming less time to study a file and expected officers to do the same. "5T will get top most priority", said Tripathy.
Earlier, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had asked the officials to adopt 5T (Teamwork, Technology, Transparency, Transformation and Time Limit) to bring about transformational change in the state.
Meanwhile, taking over charge from Naba Kumar Nayak, AP Padhi said that he will make efforts not to hamper the dignity of the State Election Commissioner's post. I will ensure smooth conduct of the upcoming civic body and panchayat polls in Odisha, said Padhi.
"I have been bestowed with the responsibility to conduct the civic body & panchayat elections. I will ensure smooth conduct of both the polls," says State Election Commissioner (SEC) Aditya Prasad Padhi #Odisha pic.twitter.com/3S8CbpKNtp
— OTV (@otvnews) August 19, 2019
[With PTI Inputs]