For the last three years, the construction of a second bridge over the Brahmani river near Panposh here has emerged hot political issue. But, a recent statement by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik that the State was ready to build the bridge has put the BJD in a spot.
The CM wrote a letter to Union Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari for his personal intervention in the issue to expedite the project or accord permission to the State to take up the bridge construction work. But the political pundits feel here that this step of Patnaik has not given any political gain to his party.
Sources said that despite the declaration of the project twice by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the construction work was delayed for which the BJP in the State has been on the back foot. Besides, the BJP is facing an embarrassing situation due to repeated expression of dissatisfaction and targeting the Centre by party’s senior leader and Rourkela MLA Dilip Ray. The repeated whining of Ray was surely music to the ears of the BJD for long, while the Congress was occasionally raising its voice targeting the BJP.
But now, when the BJD Youth wing staged a protest dharna in Rourkela on December 3 putting the BJP in the dock for delay in project work and the local BJD leaders met the CM on December 4, the BJP has gone hammer and tongs against the BJD and has begun questioning the State Government on delays over execution of a host of projects in Rourkela for which the CM had laid foundations long ago but they are still to take off.
The BJP alleged that due to inordinate delay in land and forest clearance from the State Government, the Brahmani bridge work was delayed. Besides, other parties have targeted the BJD leaders for change of location of the bridge site.
But more importantly, now the aggressive BJP has launched a scathing attack on the CM and his party on a series of failures of the BJD Government so far as Rourkela development is concerned. It raised the issue like Koel barrage and ring road (the foundation stone for the project was given by the CM in July 2013, but so far, the project has not taken off), whole sale market complex at Balijodi, Transport Nagra at Beldihi (the foundation stone was laid by the CM in 2014), XIMB campus at Rourkela and district hospital status to RGH.
Now the BJP is preparing to hit the streets on the issues. So in coming days, the BJD has to answer the public as to why such delays on its projects.