Pioneer: Naveen may declare war on Centre at rally in Ganjam

Naveen may declare war on Centre at rally in Ganjam

Santanu Barad | Kendrapara BJD to increase cadre base to 40 lakh by 2008 Biju Janata Dal supremo Naveen Patnaik appears to have declared war against the UPA Government at the Centre from his home district of Ganjam, on May 27, if the preparatory meeting of his party leaders of the district, including Energy Minister Surya Narayan Patro, held on Tuesday, is any indication.

Patnaik's scheduled visit to the district has been finalised and he is going to address a huge gathering of the party cadre, including newly elected Sarpanch, Panchayat Samiti members, block chairpersons, Zilla Parishad members and district MLAs at the Khallikote College stadium.

At least 5,000 workers from the grassroots level are expected to attend the meeting, in which Patnaik may urge them to fight against the apathetic attitude of the Congress-led UPA Government at the Centre. A couple of Ministers are also expected to attend the public meeting, which is going to be held for the first time after the recent panchayat elections.

The preparatory meeting of the party leaders, attended by Minister Patro, was held keeping in mind the importance of the visit of the party supremo. A committee has been formed to look after the details of the public meeting, and the party leaders have been entrusted with various work to ensure that it is a success.

It was evident from the discussion held among the party leaders at the Circuit House that the party is preparing to raise its cadre base to at least 30 lakh by June-end this year and is targeting 40 lakh by 2008.

Various issues may be raised at the Patnaik's public rally against the apathetic attitude, negligence and discrimination of the Central Government towards the State in matters such as the establishment of an IIT. The party cadre would launch a movement in the rural areas where they would create a public opinion among the people about the "anti-people" policy of the UPA Government.

Apart from creating public opinion against the Centre, the BJD cadre would try to generate a favourable opinion for the party by informing the people about the successes and achievements of the BJD-BJP alliance Government during the last seven years.

It may be recalled that Naveen Patnaik, while addressing a meeting of the party's elected block chairpersons and vice-chairpersons in Bhubaneswar earlier this week, had come down heavily on the UPA Government and had declared that the State would no longer approach the Centre with a begging bowl for funds for its genuine requirements and that the State would give a fitting reply to the Centre's attitude.

Pioneer: Arjun non-committal on Naveen's IIT demand

Subhasis Mohanty | Bhubaneswar In the wake of a Statewide protest over Centre's decision not to set up an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Orissa, Chief Minister Naveen Patanaik on Tuesday met Union Minister of Human Resource Development Arjun Singh in New Delhi.

However, Singh was noncommittal about lending his weight behind the State's demand. Sources said that Singh also refused to meet journalists who sought to know his stand on the Orissa Government's fresh demand for an IIT.

During their meeting, Patnaik reasoned that Orissa does not have a single institution of national excellence and that the people of the State have a long standing demand for establishment of an IIT. However, Singh assured that the demands put forth by the State would be considered while finalising the proposals of his Ministry for the 11th plan.

Patnaik also put forth a demand for setting up a Central University in the KBK region and an Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in the State. It may be noted that Patnaik has also sent a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh protesting against the Centre's decision not to set up the institute in Orissa.

Patnaik also met Union Minister for Road Transport,Highways and Shipping TR Baalu and impressed upon him the poor conditions of the National Highways in Orissa. Baalu assured the Chief Minister that extra funds would be allocated to take up urgent repair work on National Highways that connects Keonjhar district. Discussions were also held on the proposed Vijayawada-Ranchi road, which would traverse through 11 Maoists infested districts.

In yet another major development, Patnaik met Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers Ram Vilas Paswan and urged him to take steps to revive the Fertiliser Corporation of India Limited plant at Talcher in the first phase. Paswan assured Patnaik that the plant would be revived and necessary advertisements in this regard would be issued shortly.

Modi raises IIT issue with respect to Gujarat

Modi takes on Centre over Mallika, IIT issues
Santanu Banerjee | New Delhi

Gujarat CM says Plan panel 'becoming a political body'

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Monday criticised the Centre and the Planning Commission for sponsoring a controversial Rs 10 crore TV serial project by Mallika Sarabhai and denying his State an IIT.

During his meeting with Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Modi, according to officials from Gujarat, told him that these instances showed that an apolitical body like the Planning Commission was becoming a political body.

Modi told Ahluwalia that the serial on women empowerment was done without taking the State into confidence when the issue was a State subject.

Incidentally, the controversial TV serial was given to Sarabhai without following a proper procedure of calling tenders from other producers. Gujarat Government sources said the TV project was terminated as the move by the Centre, the Planning Commission and the Prasar Bharti faced stiff resistance from the State Government.

But the project was revived by pressure from 10 Janpath, State Government sources said. The controversial and the huge-budget project now revived involved producing year-long Gujarat-centric serials on women and social issues for Doordarshan. The first episode of the serial was telecast by Ahmedabad DD last month.

However, Planning Commission member Bhal Chander Mungekar told The Pioneer that ``the Gujarat Chief Minister, however, did not mention any name, but the Deputy Chairman told him that since the Plan panel has nothing to do with it, his concerns would be conveyed to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.''

According to Government sources, Modi's allegations, which earlier also stirred up heat and dust, is set to create problems both for the project and the Centre, which bended rules to give this project to Mallika Sarabhai.

Incidentally, several producers have already approached the Gujarat High Court challenging the controversial DD's contract to Sarabhai.

Much to the embarrassment for the Human Resource Development Ministry headed by Congress leader Arjun Singh, Modi also raised the issue of his State being meted out a step-motherly treatment on educational front.

He pointed out that despite his State's high developmental indicators, Gujarat was not allowed to set up the ``extension of Mumbai IIT.''

He told the Planning Commission that when last year the issue came up for a decision and when Maharashtra Government did not take kindly to the suggestion for setting up the extension, the HRD Ministry had persuaded the Maharashtra Government to create extension in the State and denied the opportunity to Gujarat.

According to Gujarat Government officials, the State Government informed the HRD that the State was ready to provide land and other infrastructural resources for setting up an extension of IIT in Gandhinagar. "But Arjun Singh had had it stopped," said an official.

Bhal Chander Mungekar, who looks after education in the Plan panel said on this issue also the Chief Minister was assured that his concerns would be conveyed to the HRD Ministry. ``At Planning Commission we do not take such a decision,'' he said.

Angry on this issue, the Gujarat Chief Minister told Planning Commission during the meeting that if the HRD could think of big educational projects for Rae Barlei in Uttar Pradesh, why a State like Gujarat should be denied an IIT.

Meanwhile, the Plan size for the current fiscal for Gujarat was fixed at Rs 16,000 crore. This includes additional Central assistance of Rs 90 crore for projects of special importance.

Earlier, during the briefing by the Commission, Modi said that the State had achieved a growth rate of 10.6 per cent for the last four years.

He informed that from a revenue deficit of Rs 6731.54 crore in 2001-02, now the State Government has a revenue surplus of Rs 1802.85 crore in 2006-07. As such, the Fiscal Responsibility Budget Management target of eliminating revenue deficit by 2007-08 has been met two years ahead of schedule. He also informed the Commission that the revenue receipts have grown by 21.14 per cent.

Pioneer: ABVP gheraos Raj Bhawan, opposes IIT shifting

ABVP gheraos Raj Bhawan, opposes IIT shifting

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar

Stepping up its agitation against the shifting up the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) from the State, the ABVP on Wednesday gheraoed the Raj Bhawan here and sought the direct intervention of Governor Rameshwar Thakur in the issue.

The ABVP activist staged a day-long dharna in front of the Raj Bhawan, during which they had a scuffle with the police. About 100 demonstrators were arrested by the police when they tried to enter the Raj Bhawan forcibly.

The ABVP leaders submitted a memorandum to the Governor, urging his direct intervention in the issue. The Congress-led UPA Government had earlier promised location of National Institute of Sciences ( NIS) in Orissa, but subsequently it was shifted elsewhere. This time the proposed IIT has also been shifted from the State. In fact, two IITs were promised to Orissa, but not even one is being located in the State, ABVP State general secretary Nirmal Sarangi said, adding that such a move is purely politically motivated, as the Centre wants to satisfy the UPA allies.

"We have urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, President APJ Abdul Kalam and Congress President Sonia Gandhi to look into the matter seriously and take into account Orissa's interest," Sarangi said.

Despite Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development Fatmi's promise in August last year, Orissa has been ignored in the matter of location of an IIT, ABVP activists pointed out.

"Union Human Resource Development Minister Arjun Singh is anti-Orissa and the UPA Government is more worried for the States which are governed by the Congress," ABVP national executive member Mahesh Mishra alleged. He warned that unless the Union Government's decision is reversed, ABVP would intensify its agitation.

The agitation over the IIT issue is likely to gather further momentum as Agami Odisha will hold a preparatory meeting on February 26 to decide its further course of action on the issue. Persons associated with different organisations are expected to participate in the meeting.

Pioneer: Agami Orissa to gherao Parliament to protest shifting of IIT

Agami Orissa to gherao Parliament to protest shifting of IIT

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar Agami Orissa, which has been at loggerheads with the Union Human Resource Development Ministry for its step-motherly attitude towards Orissa, on Thursday announced to gherao the Parliament and stage a demonstration in New Delhi if the decision for setting up of an IIT in the State is reversed. "We will stage a demonstration here involving all the students' community and after that a protest rally will be conducted at New Delhi against the conspiracy of the HRD Ministry," Agami Orissa convener Santosh Tripathy said.

With the help of students, teachers and intellectuals of the State, the Organisation would launch mass mobilisation rally in order to gain public support, he said.

The decision to shift the proposed IIT to Andhra Pradesh has proved the anti- Orissa attitude of the Central Government, Tripathy said adding that all should strongly oppose the move.

It might be noted here that earlier on October 2006, the Minister of State for Human Resource Development MAA Fatmi had announced in Patna that two IITs would be set up in Bihar and Orissa, which had made the people of the State buoyant. But the Ministry had reversed its announcement within a few days.

Meanwhile, extending its full support to the agitation call by the Agami Orissa, State unit of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad also turned the decision due to the Congress Party's age-old negligence against Orissa.

Parishad national zonal organising secretary Bishnu Das threatened that the Parishad would launch a statewide agitation against the Union HRD Ministry. "It was not the first case, earlier the Centre had promised for a NIS, but when the Left Parties mounted pressure, it was shifted to Kolkata and now both the Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav and Andhra Pradesh Government are mounting pressure," Das said adding Orissa has to wait for justice.

Samaja, Sambada, Dharitri and New Indian Express report that the CM wrote to the PM regarding the shifting of IIT

The NewIndianExp article is given below. This is also reported in Pioneer, Samaja, Sambada, Kalinga Times and Dharitri (2).

CM writes to PM demanding greenfield IIT
Thursday February 1 2007 00:00 IST

BHUBANESWAR: Taking strong exception to the reported move of the Centre to shift the establishment of an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) from Orissa to Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday shot off a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding that a greenfield IIT should be sanctioned for the State.

The Centre had announced establishment of three greenfield IITs in the country during the Eleventh Five Year Plan. Orissa was included in this proposal, which was also announced by Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development MM Fatmi on August 28 last year at Patna.

Describing the move by the Centre to establish the IITs in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan as ‘shocking’, the Chief Minister has sought the intervention of the Prime Minister in setting up such an institute in Orissa.

Establishment of an IIT would go a long way in supporting the rapid industrial growth in the State by producing highly qualified technical and managerial personnel as well as the much needed R&D support, he said.

Drawing the Prime Minister’s attention to the proposal of the IIT, Kharagpur for the upgradation of their extension centre in Orissa to a full-fledged IIT campus, Naveen said that the State Government has also formally recommended the proposal to the Ministry of HRD and conveyed willingness to provide 300 acres of land free of cost for the prestigious project. He requested the Prime Minister to sanction the extension campus also.

Stating that the vibrant growth in the industrial and technical education sectors provides enormous potential for industry and institutional linkages, Naveen said that establishment of an IIT in Orissa will greatly facilitate in intensifying this process.

Orissa is playing host to the biggest ever FDI projects in the country such as Posco and Arcelor-Mittal steel projects, he said and added that presence of such strong industrial players will definitely provide required synergy for an IIT level institution to realise its full potential.

Orissa may lose IIT to Andhra Pradesh

Orissa may lose IIT to Andhra Pradesh

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar
(Originally posted at
http://dailypioneer.com/indexn12.asp?main_variable=BHUBANESWAR&file_name=bhub6%2Etxt&counter_img=6)


... as HRD requests Planning Commission to include three new IIT's in 11 Five-Year Plan

It seems that some nasty politics is overshadowing the decision of setting up of an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Orissa. Union Minister for Human Resources Development Arjun Singh, a diehard Congress leader, seems determined not to oblige the BJD-led Government in the State to take the political mileage for setting up an IIT in the State.

The HRD Ministry has requested the Planning Commission to include three new IITs in the Eleventh-Plan period. The budget of each new IIT may be as high as Rs 4,000 crore, sources said. Union Minister of State for HRD MAA Fatmi, during the inaugural ceremony of a new experiment of the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) in Patna, has said, "The proposal for IITs for Orissa and a western State, besides an IIT for Bihar, will be included in 11th Five-Year Plan."

The mention of Bihar and Orissa in the context of IIT makes sense as both States are in the bottom three (the other being Rajasthan) of HRD Ministry spending with respect to fully centrally funded higher education institutions and neither of them has an HRD-funded IIT, IIM, Central University, IISER, etc. The mention of two IITs in Orissa probably referred to a new IIT and a proposal for a branch or extension of IIT Kharagpur in Bhubaneswar.

However, even though the 11th Plan proposal is not yet finalised, confidential inquiries reveal that the three new IITs will be in Bihar, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh. And accordingly, the HRD Ministry has sent letters to the concerned State Governments. Moreover, reports also mention that the plans for branch campuses have been stalled.

Despite being at the bottom of the HRD funding, Ministry always skips over Orissa. Earlier, a proposed National Institute of Sciences in Bhubaneswar was shifted to Kolkata, despite protests from people all over the State and its representatives in Parliament roaring over the HRD Ministry's antipathy. Ultimately, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had to come to the State's rescue as he granted it an NISER to be funded by the Department of Atomic Energy.

Now, the HRD Ministry has once again overlooked Orissa with respect to the IITs. This time, it seems Orissa is superseded by the Congress-ruled Andhra Pradesh, which, earlier in the year, was awarded not one but two upgrades to IIT cousins. Andhra University Engineering College and Osmania University Engineering College were earlier included in the list to be upgraded as IIESTs (Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology). Thus, Andhra gets a new IIT and two IIT-like institutions funded by the HRD Ministry.

The people of Orissa in general and non-resident Oriyas in particular have now reasons to believe that the HRD Ministry under Arjun Singh is nourishing personal grudge against the NDA-ruled State and trying to benefit the States run by the UPA partners.