No time to point fingers at efforts of Orissa govt: Naveen

Bhubaneswar, Oct 4 (UNI) Claiming that the law and order situation in Kandhamal had improved a lot in the past few days, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today replied to Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil's letter, stating that it was not the time to point fingers at the efforts of the state government to bring a very difficult situation under control.

Expressing unhappiness over lack of action by the Orissa government to curb violence against the minority community, Home Minister Shivraj Patil today sought a report from the Orissa government and Governor M C Bhandare about the situation in the state, indicating the possibility of imposition of President's rule.

In his letter to Mr Patil, the Chief Minister said the state government had taken a number of measures to contain the situation in Kandhamal district.

Apart from deployment of police force in different strategic locations, the administration had arrested 305 people, who included a large number of mischief-mongers, anti-social elemeuts, criminals and members of the fundamentalist groups, Mr Patnaik said.

He claimed that there had been no law and order problem in the district for past three days and the number of people in the relief camps had come down from 23,000 to about 15,000, giving an indication of an improved law and order situation in the district.

The Chief Minister said the government was trying its best to tame the complex situation with speed and sincerity.

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