Pradhan flays State for lack of healthcare

Dhenkanal: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan slammed the Odisha government, led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, for failure to address healthcare, irrigation and drinking water issues.

Doctors’ posts are lying vacant and people are facing a lot of hardships in getting proper treatment in hospitals, he said. Malnutrition is high in the State, he added.

Talking to mediapersons, Pradhan said farmers have been waiting for water through Rengali canal.

They are yet to get irrigation facilities even after years of waiting in Dhenkanal and Angul districts, he said.

Pradhan said the State government’s delay in forest clearance for underpass is in turn delaying the completion of NH 55. He, however, said that work on NH 55 will be completed soon. Pradhan said accidents on NH 55 are taking place due to traffic mismanagement. He said while he was coming from Angul PTC to Tata industry, he found many vehicles stranded as there was no traffic management.

The Union minister said the BJP will expose the 25 years of ‘false claims’ made by the BJD.

Pradhan welcomed BJD general secretary Harsha Bardhan Singh Deo and his supporters and former Hindol NAC chairperson Rina Behera and her supporters to the BJP during ‘Mishrana Parba.’