BHUBANESWAR: There was confusion over the amount of funds sanctioned for Odisha in the Union Budget for Railways as the state government differed from the figures shared by the East Coast Railway (ECoR).
State commerce and transport minister Padmanabh Behera on Thursday said he has official information that Odisha has got Rs 4,500 crore. It is far lower than the figures of Rs 6995.58 crore shared by ECoR.
“We have official information that Odisha has received Rs 4,500 crore in the Union Budget for development of railway sector in the state. It is really disappointing for us because we have demanded Rs 7200 crore for this year,” said Behera.
He said Railway minister Piyush Goyal has tweeted that allocation of railway budget for Odisha is Rs 5528 crore for the year 2021-22, while the ECoR here on Thursday clarified that the funding for Odisha in 2021-22 under all plan heads combined is Rs 6995.58 crore. “Anybody can find this mismatch of information. I do not know how the ECoR came up with a different figure altogether,” he added.
The ECoR has clarified that the budget outlay of Rs 5528 crore was for development of infrastructure and safety related works for Odisha which does not include many other projects and estimates as they are not significant enough for mention at ministry level. “But for ECoR and Odisha, these are important development works. That’s why the funding for Odisha in 2021-22 under all plan heads combined is Rs 6995.58 crore,” said the ECoR statement.
Congress state president Niranjan Patnaik said Odisha is neglected in the rail budget this time too. “The Centre has allocated good funds for the poll-bound states like West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. The state is also not raising its voice because it has secret understanding with the Centre,” he added.
However, Union petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan has described the allocation as historic. “Allocation for railway projects in Odisha has received an increased amount than last year. During Congress government time, Odisha was receiving an average allocation of Rs 838 crore per year between 2009 and 2014. Under the Modi government, Odisha has been receiving an average of Rs 4,126 crore (392 per cent) per year for the railway sector starting from 2014,” he added.
Pradhan said the Centre has given priority to eastern India including Odisha.