Tag: Ashutosh Mishra

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Polavaram dispute is going to put the renewed friendship between BJP and the Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal (BJD) to a severe test. The multi-purpose project coming up in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh that threatens to submerge several tribal villages in Odisha’s Malkangiri district was granted a two-year work extension by the […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Nearly two decades ago when South Korean steel behemoth, POSCO signed an MoU with Odisha government for setting up a steel mill in Jagatsinghpur district the then government led by Naveen Patnaik touted it as its crowning glory. The agreement symbolized the arrival of Odisha on the country’s industrial scene and […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Odisha is among the top beneficiaries of Centre’s CAMPA fund meant for compensatory afforestation. It has received more than Rs.5000 crore on this account this year which is much more than the share of bigger states like Maharashtra and Rajasthan. The fund, as evident from its nomenclature, is aimed at restoring […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Forest and police officials face a big challenge with wildlife smuggling in Odisha going hi-tech. Officials who busted a pangolin smuggling racket recently discovered to their surprise that deals were being made online with criminals operating through WhatsApp groups. The same pattern is obviously being followed for the smuggling of other […]

By Ashutosh Mishra London: Struggling to recover from the trauma of last Friday’s killings by a convicted terrorist who had been released from prison this city will seek to build new defences to ward off such incidents in future. The lessons learnt from the bloody rampage that ended with its perpetrator, Usman Khan being shot […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Opposition parties have launched a series of protests against the spurt in crime against women. Considering the enormity of the problem the protests should be converted into and sustained as a people’s movement. The fact is that while the whole country is talking about the gang-rape of a veterinary doctor in […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Trouble is brewing in Malkangiri’s “swabhiman anchal”, a benighted hinterland which got its new moniker following the inauguration of Gurupriya bridge by chief minister, Naveen Patnaik last year. The bridge that linked what was once officially known as the ‘cut-off’ area comprising 151 villages with the mainland after a gap of […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Santhali, the language spoken by India’s largest tribal community spread across Odisha, Bihar, Chhatisgarh and Jharkhand, found an articulate voice in the Rajya Sabha on Friday when Biju Janata Dal (BJD) member, Sarojini Hembram used it to make a point during the zero hour. This was the first time the language was […]

By Ashutosh Mishra London: In less than a week from now the people of Britain will be exercising their franchise to decide the future of the country, a future that seems to be hanging in the balance with a fierce debate still raging over Brexit. Prime Minister, Boris Johnson himself has described the December 12 […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: The Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal (BJD) will in all probability support NDA government’s controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in Parliament. It’s refusal to do so, which seems highly improbable, has the potential to change the dynamics of its existing relationship with the Modi-led Centre. The Bill that aims to provide citizenship […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Onion scarcity has turned into a national crisis with soaring prices practically having forced the Indian kitchen staple out of the middle class kitchens. Acute shortage of the bulb is spawning jokes and parodies which have flooded the social media in the last few weeks. “Ye pyaz haemin kis mod pe […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: There is growing speculation in the media over who will be the next president of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) in Odisha. Names are being bandied about and their chances being discussed. The possibility of incumbent president, Basant Panda, who is now a Lok Sabha member, getting a fresh term is […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: The launch of Mission Suvidya by chief minister, Naveen Patnaik to ensure better amenities for students in the hostels run by the scheduled tribes and scheduled caste development department is expected to give these institutions a much-needed face-lift. The SC&ST hostels had turned into the breeding ground of scandals with several […]

By Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Maoist rebels have warned the residents of a particular village in Malkangiri, state’s most formidable Red citadel, against using their mobile phones. Orapadar, located in the district’s Swabhiman Anchal ( earlier known as the cut-off area), is a dark hinterland with connectivity the biggest problem being faced by the people. With […]

By: Ashutosh Mishra Bhubaneswar: Media has reported about the felling of around 40,000 trees in Sambalpur’s Talabira village to facilitate coal mining. The destruction of greenery followed Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC)’s Stage II clearance for diverting 1,038.187 hectares of forest land for an opencast coal mining project. Believed to be […]