State Assembly or a circus ring?
Amid din and bustle in the State Assembly last week, the ruling BJD was successful in formation of a House Committee which will meet the President of India to demand a hike the minimum support price(MSP) for paddy. The Opposition in the Assembly tried to catch the ruling party on the wrong foot by forcing a discussion on farmers’ suicide which is on the rise in the State, but the latter cleverly diverted the issue to Mahanadi and Polavoram issues, blaming the BJP Government for not giving justice to Odisha. Speaker of the Assembly Pradeep Amat, somehow, restored order and the Supplementary Budget could be placed in the Assembly. A question that strikes is how could the civilized members carry posters and samples of spurious pesticide bottles into the Assembly hall and displayed them knowing well that the proceedings are covered by the electronic media and telecast live? Could they not be refused entry with such materials which bring down the pride of the Assembly as temple of democracy? Can we tolerate this temple turn into a circus ring? Nobody bothers if valuable time of the Assembly is washed away. It happened on December 1 when hockey fever gripped the members. Running away from Assembly discussion is a bad omen for sustainable democracy.
J’suguda oil terminal a BJP image booster
If the meeting of State Election Commissioner DN Gupta with the Chief Election Commissioner of India last week has any indication, then a date for Bijepur by-election is likely to be fixed during December itself, probably after Gujarat election results are out. If that happens, sops for Bijepur in Bargarh and its peripheral district like Balangir and Jharsuguda will have no place because of the code of conduct to follow soon after. Oil, Natural Gas and Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, therefore, hurried through to dedicate the state-of-the-art oil terminal at Maliguda in Jhasuguda district last week. The oil terminal is said to ensure uninterrupted delivery of fuel supply to 10 districts of western Odisha. Pradhan while dedicating this project to the nation did not forget to highlight his boss Narendra Modi. Likely to be projected as BJP’s CM candidate for Odisha in the next general election, Pradhan is leaving no stone unturned to introduce more and more development projects. Dharmendra is making his presence felt in Odisha through a strong financial backing of his ministry. Even as the Bijepur seat is fast slipping out of BJP’s grip, his pan-Odisha image continues to illuminate.
K’mal village where amenities a far cry
The Centre and the State Government boast of spending crores for road connectivity under the Pradhan Mantri Sadak Yojana and the Biju Sadak Yojana, respectively. But Prahedipanka village under the Daringbadi Panchayat of Phulbani in Kandhamal district remains deprived of good communication as it remains cut off from the mainland in the absence of roads. The lone unpaved road in the village was damaged by the recent rains followed by stagnation of water on the road, leading to its bifurcation which has added to the woes of the commuters. Surrounded by dense forests and hills, the village is about 50 km from the block headquarters inhabited by around 300 individuals hailing from 63 scheduled tribe families. They have been living in darkness even after 70 years of independence for want of basic civic amenities like electricity. With no tube well in the village, the villagers survive on unsafe water collected from nullahs and pits. Potable water still remains a dream for the beleaguered villagers. It has no anganwadi centre to take care of the children, let alone a school for them. This is the plight of the village under a panchayat which draws media attention only when mercury takes a downward slide during the thick winter. A history of snowfall almost every year notwithstanding, the Government’s roadmap for reaching out to these tribals seems to have lost its way somewhere and the minimum civic boost is denied to them. Now if they hold the banner of Maoists or the Naxalities and take the law into their hand, there is none to buy the Government’s jittery. Combing operation by the SOG jawans therefore should run parallel to schemes to meet the basic needs of life.
‘Kadwi Hawa’ has award winning material
Neel Madhav Panda, best known for his movie ‘I am Kalam’, has shot into limelight once again with his new film Kadwi Hawa which deals a serious topic in an entertaining manner. In his latest offering, Panda, who comes from a poor family of western Odisha, talks about the impact on environment. But never did he expect that the first movie on climate change will become a casualty of environment. The screening of Kadwi Hawa, at an open space at the World Health Organisation headquarters recently was cancelled and was shifted to the enclosed environs of a cinema hall. “The Indian audience does not care about the change in environment. The emphasis is only on development. We do not care what happens to nature. The only time there is some focus when there is industrial development and some forest cutting involved,” said Panda. He further said, “We kept in mind that the film has to be entertaining. Why should someone spend two hours on a boring film?” Yes! We do agree as we suffer more because of an undisciplined way of living, which more often than not, is reflected in our temperament to nature and environment. The film is likely to make a global impact and impress the audience at the international film festivals. It will not be a surprise if Panda and his film win a couple of awards too.