Naveen flays UPA govt's anti-state policies.

Bhubaneswar, Jun 12 (UNI) Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today lashed out at the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre for its ''anti-people and anti-state policies'' Adressing a meeting organised by the party to protest the recent hike in petrol, diesel and LPG, Mr Patnaik said the UPA government was standing in the way of the state's development by formulating policies against its interest.

He said the new national mining policy had become the stumbling block for Orissa, which had rich mineral resources, and the government wanted plants to come up to generate employment opportunities.

The Chief Minister said the state has a right over its mines and demanded the Union Government change its policy.

Mr Patnaik alleged that even though he had brought this to the notice of the Prime Minister several times, no positive step was taken so far to revise the coal royalty.

He said the government had launched several welfare schemes for the poor and announced some packages for the development of the tribals. He appealed to the party workers to take it to every Panchayat and village.

Earlier, top leaders of the party, addressing the gathering appealed to the people to dislodge the Congress from power in the next elections for its anti-people and anti-state policies.

They also appealed to the alliance partners of the Congress including NCP, CPI and CPI(M) to withdraw their support from the UPA government in the interest of the poor people.

Mr Patnaik said while the UPA government failed to check the inflation, which had already crossed the eight per cent mark, the rise in prices of petroleum products would further push up the prices of essential commodities and hit the poor the most.

The Chief Minister also said though the tax on petroleum products was the lowest in Orissa, his government lowered it further from the earlier 20 per cent to 18 per cent to give the much-needed relief to the people.

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