PARADIP: Simmering discontent among people over unfulfilled promises has clouded the high profile visit of Union Road Transport and Highways, Shipping and Water Resources Minister Nitin Gadkari along with Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Jual Oram to Paradip on Wednesday.

The BJP hopes to gain political capital out of the launch of various projects by the Ministers including inauguration of the Polypropelene Plant and laying of foundation stone for the Monoethylene Glycol Plant at Paradip Refinery and commencement of work for the LPG import terminal at Paradip port in view of the forthcoming elections. But a sheer lack of enthusiasm among the people has come as a dampener.
The residents of the port town have complained that all the promises made by the Union Ministers earlier were only on paper without any visible progress. 

“In his last visit to Paradip in 2015, Gadkari had  announced to set up a super-specialty hospital and medical college in the district. However, the project is yet to see the light of the day. He had also promised to develop Paradip into a Smart City and Smart Port with an investment of `40,000 crore. But nothing has been done,” said Sarat Kumar Rout, a local.

Around 80 per cent of the population of Paradip lives in slums. Most of them live in informal settlements with no legal tenant rights. Basic amenities like drinking water, sanitation, electricity, roads and livelihood options are still a dream in these slums. Non-regularisation of unauthorised colonies, lack of proper implementation of housing projects in slum areas due to long standing land dispute between Paradip Port

Trust (PPT) and State Government have added to the woes of slum dwellers. Sudarshan Behera, a slum dweller, said the new projects are meaningless for people until the basic needs are fulfilled and that can only be done by acting on the promises made earlier.