Naveen announces Rs.600 crores Biju KBK plan in Orissa

Bhubaneswar, Aug 12 (UNI) Peeved at the decision of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs to discontinue the Revised Long Term Action Plan (RLTAP) for the underdeveloped KBK region in Orissa, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today announced a special Biju KBK Plan.

The special plan to be funded by the state government with an outlay of Rs.600 crore during the 11th Five year Plan, would be a tribute to the great leader Biju Patnaik, who had conceived the RLTAP for the eight districts of KBK region in the state.

Intervening into a debate on the KBK plan in the state assembly, the Chief Minister said the government would not go to the Centre with a begging bowl for funding for the KBK region after the decision of the cabinet Committee of on Economic Affairs.

The Assembly yesterday witnessed pandemonium forcing Speaker Maheswar Mohanty to adjourn the house for seven times over the decision of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs to discontinue the RLTAP for KBK region of the state.

The Opposition argued that the RLTAP had not been discontinued and accused the Chief Minister of misleading the house. They later staged a noisy walkout to protest against the misleading statement of the Chief Minister.

Mr Patnaik in his statement said the decision to reduce the fund for the KBK would be a major set back for the development of the region and appealed to the members to pass an unanimous resolution to recommend the continuance of the RLTAP in the 11th Five Year Plan period.

He said he had requested the Prime Minister and the Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission to provide assistance of Rs.500 crore per year to the KBK region from the existing Rs.250 crore. But the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs recently decided that the KBK regions would receive only Rs.250 crore per anum during the 11th Five Year Plan from the Backward Region Grants Fund.

Mr Patnaik said the KBK Plan was started during the time of late Biju Patnaik and a Long term Action Plan (LTAP) was submitted to the centre for Rs.4557 crore which was later revised to Rs.5527 crore.

He said the state government had so far received Rs.1277 crore from the Centre as a special grant for the KBK region although the expenditure has been excellent, about 97 per cent.

The Chief Minister came down heavily on the Centre while comparing the decision of the cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on KBK region of Orissa and Bihar.

He said in case of Bihar the meeting had decided that 36 out of 38 districts would get an allotment of Rs.15 crore each per year from the Backward Region Grant Fund in addition to the special assistance of Rs.1000 crore.

He said Bihar would receive Rs.1540 crore per year while the KBK region would receive only Rs.250 crore and the rest eleven districts would get Rs.155 crore every year.

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