Saraswati Namastubhyam

Varade Kamarupini

Vidyarambam Karishyami

Siddhir Bhavatu Me Sada

Saraswatyei Mahamaye Vidye Kamalalochane

Padma Patram Vishalakshi Vidyam Dehi

Namastute.


Saturday, November 8, 2008

Water tourism planned in Mahanadi, Birupa.

The Pioneer,November 8, 2008

Bhubaneswar: The State Government is planning to develop water sports and water tourism in Mahanadi and Birupa rivers. A detailed plan has already been prepared to this effect and would be implemented in the end week of the current month. Mumbai based Swgatika Impex would be roped in to develop water tourism in these two rivers. "It would be developed on the public-private partnership (PPP) mode," said Tourism Minister Debi Prasad Mishra, adding that tourist places like Dhabaleswar and Sidheswar would be connected with the water tourism.

Another Defence unit in the offing in Balasore

The Pioneer, BHUBANESWAR ,November 8, 2008

Balasore district is likely to see another defence unit in the near future near Amarda (Basta) as the Army is seeking a patch of land for the purpose. A requisition for identification of 1,000 acres of land has come to the district administration from the State Government’s concerned department for setting up the Army unit.The Government’s letter said that the unit’s location should be at Amarda at the British-time airfield at Rasgobindapur, which has been lying unused since several years. The unit is supposed to have facilities of road and rail links but not to be too close to the township.

A delegate of the Army has already met Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik with the proposal and apprised him of the requirements, which has been approved. It is, however, not clear as to what type of Army institution is being planned. The patch of land is required at Amarda because of the existing airstrip and land of over 100 acres belonging to the DRDO.The Army desires to set up the unit here since Orissa has only a few defence establishments. The Army would develop the area as well the periphery as per requirements, it is mentioned in the letter. This unit would be another one in Balasore district, where several key defence establishments and installations, including the century-old PXE and missile testing range of DRDO are located.

The letter has been further sent to the tehsildar of Basta for compliance. “As per the need of the Army and instruction from the State Government, the letter has been forwarded to the Basta tehsildar,” said reliable sources.The British constructed the Amarda airfield of nearly 2,000 yards at Rasgobindapur around 1940 during the Second World War to meet the threat of Japanese attack from their Myanmar base.

POWER PLANT, ‘Prioritise socio-economic survey’

Express News Service , 08 Nov 2008

BHUBANESWAR: Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy today directed the companies who have signed memoranda of understanding (MoU) with the State Government to set up mega power plants in Orissa to make a socio-economic survey around the location of their projects. The Chief Secretary reviewed the progress of seven mega power plant projects. ‘‘The companies should involve themselves in social activities including organising eye and health camps. The requirements of local people should be assessed and training should be imparted,’’ he said. Some of the companies maintained that the projects have been delayed because of opposition to land acquisition and water problem. Besides, several companies are yet to get coal blocks. The Chief Secretary directed the engineer-in-chief of the Water Resources Department to solve the water problems of the mega power plants. While some of the proposed plants would draw water from Mahanadi river, others will meet their demand from the Bramhani river. Besides opposition to land acquisition, delay in conversion of forest land also came as a major hurdle, they said. Tripathy directed the Collector, Angul, who attended the meeting, to solve problems relating to land acquisition faced by the companies. The Mahanadi Aban Power Company Limited will set up 1,030 MW plant at Talcher in Angul district. The land requirement for the project is 1,035 acres. The location of the plant to be set up by GMR Limited will be at Kamalanga in Dhenkanal district. The land requirement of the plant is 1,100 acres which includes 78 acres forest land. The Jindal India Thermal Power Limited will set up its 1,200 MW plant at Jerang in Angul district on 1,100 acres of land. The first and second units of the plant will be completed by December, 2011 and March, 2012 respectively. The 2,000 MW plant of Tata Power Company Limited will be located at Marthapur near Naraj in Cuttack district on 990 acres. The Essar Power Limited has proposed to set up its 1,000 MW plant on 1,070 acres of land at Karang in Angul district. The plant is expected to start production in March, 2012. The CESC Limited will establish its 1,000 MW plant on 1,094 acres of land at Neulapur in Dhenkanal district. The first unit of the plant will be competed by March, 2013 while the second unit be completed in September, 2013. The KVK Nilachal Power Limited will set up its 1,200 MW plant at Kandarei near Athgarh in Cuttack district. The project will be over by March, 2011.

Ship building, oil rig project for Dhamra.

Express News Service,08 Nov 2008

BHUBANESWAR: Apeejay Surendra Group and Bharti Shipyard have evinced interest to set up a ship building factory while an oil rig is being proposed by the Oceanic Shipyard Ltd near Dhamra. Both the projects are estimated at Rs 900 crore each. The chief executives of the companies met Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik here today to discuss the issues of land acquisition, employment other project details. The ship building unit is proposed to start from January 2009 and its first phase will be complete in 2011. The project is expected to be over by 2013. About 7,000 persons will get direct employment in the project, while over 40,000 people will indirectly benefit. The State will get Rs 20 crore a year as revenue. The oil rig, proposed in collaboration with Oceanic Shipyard Ltd, will be of an equal cost. It will be taken up in three phases and help ancillarisation as well as downstream industries in the area.

Ravenshaw forges MoU with Chinese varsity.

Express News Service ,08 Nov 2008

CUTTACK: Step by step Ravenshaw University has begun setting new milestones in the academic course in Orissa. Even as it has been making conscious efforts towards developing as a Centre of Excellence, with distinction in culture studies, today it made a move beyond the boundaries of India to forge a relationship with China. An MoU was signed between Vice-Chancellor of Ravenshaw University Devdas Chhotray and Chief of Shanxi University of Finance and Economics Prof. Yao Chaocheng to promote bilateral cooperation between the two countries through academic and cultural exchanges. This is the first time in the State for an educational institution to establish relationship with a counterpart in China. Orissa and China have strong links since ancient times. The common thread between the two regions has been Lord Buddha. Buddhism being the corner-stone of the culture, heritage, economic structure and resources, the liaison would be natural. Besides educational exchanges between the two universities, the agreement would involve furthering cultural assimilation through Buddhist studies. It has also been suggested to jointly hold an International Buddhist Academic Forum on an annual basis. The forum would be organised in Shanxi and Orissa alternately year after year. The modalities of the MoU would be finalised after Prof.Yao Chaocheng submits a detailed report on the relationship to the management of the Shanxi University of Finance and Economics. Prof Chaocheng had led a delegation from the prestigious university of China on a two-day visit to Ravenshaw University from yesterday.

Friday, November 7, 2008

Historic Coast Canal to be renovated.

The historic Coast Canal, abandoned for years, is likely to be operational soon with clearance from the Ministry of Surface Transport for renovation after discussions in Parliament. The Union Government has approved a budget outlay of Rs 1,526 crore with a recurring expenditure Rs 59 crore annually.

BJP MP Kharabela Swain following approval of this mega project, besides expressing his thanks to the Ministry has also made certain observations. Seeking speedy implementation of project he observed that encroachments should be cleared since by shrimp farming and other activities at several places the canal has been filled due to dormancy and non-dredging. “There is no sign of any canal after a long unused period. The canal land at several places have been encroached by shrimp farming and other activities,” Swain pointed to the Ministry in Parliament, demanding the land which has been encroached by the mafia in the shrimp farming sector should be recovered and State Government should take stringent action.

He further stated that the dredging would enhance drainage and urged for development of embankment, adequate numbers of small bridges over the canal to ferry cattle for farming and grazing activities and sluice gates to check saline water ingress from sea towards land. He urged for a meticulous planning before undertaking work with regards to the bridge and observed “in future whosoever wanted to cross in front of his village will raise some sort of embankment if all these are not made in a planned manner.”

“The embankment on either side could be developed as Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana road,” he suggested. “The region was full of jungles when it was made which provided an alternate safe passage for trade and transport. The renovation of canal issue although it affects my constituency yet is in fact an issue of the State as well as country. It is one which has been in my priority agenda ever since I found opportunity to represent people of this constituency. I had always raised the issue in different occasions. Since the issue is has been cleared it is certainly a matter of happiness for me as well as my constituency people,” reacted Swain.He too urged the Ministry for speedy implementation of the project with a time frame.“You should fix a time frame by which the project should be implemented else it will remain in paper for eternity and won’t be implemented at all,” he appealed on the Parliament floor.
At a cost of Rs 45 lakh the canal was dug connecting Guakhali to Matei at Charbatia under food for work programme between 1880 and 1885 when region was hit by a severe famine. Although purpose was to provide relief to starving populace of the region immediately yet the water passage had opened ample of opportunities including irrigation besides communication. After opening of railway links between Howrah and Cuttack the water passage lost significance considerably.

State GDP gets 28% from Horticulture.

PNS | Bhubaneswar

The horticulture sector has got a tremendous boost in the State and it contributes around 28 per cent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from about 13.08 percent of the area and 37 per cent of the total exports of agricultural commodities, said Governor MC Bhandare, while inaugurating the four-day-long Third Indian Horticulture Congress at the Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) on Thursday, in a galaxy of eminent horticulture scientists.

Though horticulture is a sustainable and viable sector for small and marginal farmers in the State, poor harvest management often affects the farmers, he said, adding that diversification of crops through horticulture is very much necessary.

He, however, expressed his pleasure over Union Government for increasing over Rs 25 crore in the 7th Plan to over Rs 15,000 crore in the 10th plan for horticulture sector.Recollecting the havoc wrought by the recent flood, which has affected around 16 districts in the State, he said the agriculture scientists are required to develop appropriate technologies for post-flood farming so as to meet the loss of crops in flood.
The horticulture scientists should show the path to the future generation. But this is not enough.Each of them should go to villages, stay there for two years, and give practical training and guidelines to the farmers about the modern technologies and scientific methods of horticulture, which can be adopted for a better output, viewed Madhya Pradesh Governor Balaram Jakhar in his presidential address.

Number of Cancer patients in Orissa is increasing.

The burden of cancer has spiralled with new cancer incidence in Orissa being about 100 per 100,000 population.
There are about 30,000 new cancer cases every year and about 1,20,000 cancer patients in Orissa at any point of time in various stages of their disease.
Patients usually report at advanced stage, thus making cure impossible. Early detection is key to cancer control and people have to be made aware of this.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Natural calamities: Orissa lost Rs 20,000 cr in 16 yrs

PNS | Bhubaneswar

The country's poorest State, Orissa, is getting poorer, owing to the natural calamities striking it's zone almost every year. The State's geographical location and geo-climatic conditions make it one of the most vulnerable zones for frequent natural disasters, pointed Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) Nikunja Kishore Sundaray.

He said more than 80 per cent of the geographical area and 90 per cent of the people are vulnerable to one or more types of disasters. Over 60 per cent people living below the poverty line (BPL) face the brunt of calamities and their economic conditions have been deteriorating rapidly.

During the last 16 years, the State has suffered a staggering financial loss of Rs 20,000 crore. Since 1995-96 to 2007-08, the loss was Rs 17,385 crore, Sundaray said.

Due to the Super Cyclone of 1999, the State became poorer by Rs 6,243 crore, he revealed. This year's devastating floods have cost the State Rs 2,500 crore, according to a preliminary survey. And after the final assessment, the loss would rise further, said an analyst of flood damage.

Cyclonic disturbances are also relatively high on the Orissa coast in comparison to West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, he said, adding that this coast is twice more vulnerable compared to other eastern States. Orissa is one of the States worst affected by flood, he said, adding that Orissa's 3.34 million hectares of land is flood-prone.

Apart from storms and severe cyclones, the Orissa coast is also prone to tsunami, while the reservoirs of the Hirakud and Rengali dams are in the Earthquake Zone-III.

In this backdrop, the SRC has raised the issue of reviewing the Calamity Relief Fund (CRF) kitty and lowering the ratio of the State's share of 25 per cent to the CRF. It may be mentioned that the State Government is now preparing to present a memorandum to the Thirteenth Finance Commission

Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Malnutrition prevention centres to be opened

The Hindu.

BHUBANESWAR: In a bid to raise awareness level in public about health of mothers and children, the State government has decided to organise Health and Nutrition Day at every anganwadi centre of the State once a month.At a high level meeting chaired by Health Secretary Anu Garg, it was resolved that the health and nutrition day will be observed either on every Tuesday or Friday.Anganwadi workers, Asha karmies, representatives of Panchayati Raj institutions and general people would have to remain present on those days for the success of this initiative, a Health Department statement said here on Monday.

According to sources, the programme would be launched at an anganwadi centre in Koraput district on November 14, which is observed as Children’s Day.Similarly, three child malnutrition prevention and rehabilitation centres would come up in Koraput, Kalahandi and Mayurbhanj district. A budgetary allocation of Rs. 8 lakh has been made for each centre.

'Kandhamal violence due to SC-ST rift'.

PTI

NEW DELHI: Seeking to deflect attention from Bajrang Dal which has been accused for attacks on Christians, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday said the recent incidents of violence were a manifestation of the "conflict of interest" between Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.Speaking at the National Integration Council (NIC) meeting here, he sought to project a rosy picture of Orissa in terms of communal harmony even while acknowledging the "disturbances in some pockets" of the state from "time to time", for which he blamed "ethnic strains, particularly among ST and SC communities".

Referring to two incidents of communal violence in Kandhamal, he said there were clashes between members of SC and ST communities in the past "on account of conflict of interest in the matter of land rights, employment opportunities and religion"."The recent incidents of violence in Kandhamal are a manifestation of such discord," he said about the district where STs constitute 53 per cent of the population and SCs constitute 22 per cent.This comment assumes significance as the violence against Christians and churches has been blamed on Bajrang Dal, prompting demands for banning the Sangh Parivar outfit.

Patnaik insisted that the situation in Kandhamal has been brought under control and a "gamut" of measures initiated to facilitate "harmonious and speedier" socio-economic development of different communities living in the district.He said a Special Administrator of the rank of a Commissioner has been appointed in the district to oversee the development of the area. The administrator has been given powers to settle long-standing issues over land rights.

Finally Orissa Govt starts looking into false certificate cases in Kandhamal

Bijoy Pradhan IENS
BHUBANESWAR: After decades of neglect, the State Government in an initiative similar to the ‘wiser after the event syndrome’ has started looking into the false caste certificate issue in Kandhamal district.
It took more than a decade for the Government to prepare a resolution as per the Supreme Court ruling on issues of caste certificate in Madhuri Patil verses Additional Commissioner, Tribal Development, Thane, case. The apex court ruling was pronounced on April 28, 1997.
The Supreme Court has laid down a detailed procedure for identification of false caste certificates with the ruling that such cases should be handled by a police officer of the rank of inspector of police.
Notwithstanding the claim of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Revenue Minister Manmohan Samal after the December 2007 attack on Swami Lakshmanananda Saraswati that tehsildars of Kandhamal district are on the job of verifying cases relating to false caste certificates, the Government resolution as per the apex court ruling only issued to the district collectors on June 28, official sources said.
The Government deputed 10 inspectors of police to investigate the false caste certificate complaints only recently following request from the Kandhamal district administration.
The district administration has also provided two-day training to the 10 cops. While officers of ST and SC Development Department and anthropologists from the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Research Institute, Bhubaneswar, provided basic knowledge on how to distinguish non-tribals from tribals, senior district officers guided them on administrative issues involved in dealing with false caste certificate cases, Kandhamal District Collector Krishen Kumar told this paper.

The police inspectors will be deputed in those blocks having maximum such complaints, Kumar said adding, the district administration has received about 540 registered complaints so far.Apprehending slow progress on the investigation front in the current month, Kumar exuded confidence that the process will speed up from November. Efforts will be made to complete the investigation as quickly as possible as a series of procedures need to be followed, he added.The specially deputed police officers have a final round of discussion today with senior district officials at the Phulbani collectorate. Special administrator, Kandhamal, Madhusudan Padhi was present.

Most of the complainants alleged that ‘Panas’ and Christian ‘Panas’ have entered into Government services by producing false caste (ST) certificates. Although ‘Panas’ ceased to enjoy the status of Scheduled Caste after conversion to Christianity, Christian ‘Panas’ are still getting both the benefits.a

Ravenshaw signs MoU to start unique facility.

Express News Service

CUTTACK: Continuing to tread the uncharted path to redefine the academic milieu in the State, Ravenshaw University on Saturday announced plans for setting up a unique facility in contemporary music.

The initiative envisages establishment of not only one of the richest repository of contemporary music in the country but also offer educational programmes in niche areas relating to it. And, what better way of starting it than by naming it as Akshaya Mohanty Centre for Contemporary Music, after the legendary singer of Orissa.
The project, in fact, would come up in association with the Akshay Mohanty Foundation (AMF) and entails an investment of Rs 1 crore. Both Ravenshaw University and the foundation would be pooling Rs 50 lakh each.
A provisional MoU was signed between the university and foundation here today. As per the agreement, the foundation would prepare a detailed project report on the basis of which work would commence. The music library would be up and running within a year, Vice-Chancellor Devdas Chotray said.

The library would not only store and archive Oriya contemporary music but also other Indian languages like Hindi along with English, Japanese, African, French, Latin, Deutsch etc. ‘‘It would have listening boxes where students can listen to the music without disturbing each other. We also have proposals to enable community access to one of its kind facility in Orissa,’’ the Vice-Chancellor informed.

The centre also plans to start Department of Sound and Department of Presentation to offer courses in the areas that are now considered integral parts of music and performance. The Department of Sound would train students in the best studio management and recording practices using the latest technology, while the Department of Presentation would arm the musical performers from singers to musicians to instrumentalists with a riveting stage presence.

‘‘Today stage presence like proper posture and positioning along with placement of instruments and accessories is deemed a prerequisite at the international-level. The course which would be run by expert faculty drawn from across the country aims at preparing our artistes for the international audience. Further, both the departments would be used by students for in-house productions for Ravenshaw Radio and other performances,’’ he added.

Naveen picks holes in Centre’s claim.

PNS | New Delhi

The Chief Ministers of Orissa and Karnataka, the two States where violence prompted the Central Government to call the National Integration Council (NIC) meeting, have shot back at their critics for trying to 'frame' the State Governments "without any reason'.
Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday said the recent incidents of violence were a manifestation of the "conflict of interest' between Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Patnaik explained that the long history of ill-feeling and suspicion between the Scheduled Tribes (ST) and Scheduled Castes (SCs) on a variety of issues such as forcible occupation of land of the tribals and jobs secured on the basis of false caste certificates are the main reasons for the ongoing violence in Kandhamal district.
Kandhas and Panas are the original inhabitants of the Kandhamal. While majority of the Kandhas are Hindus, most of the Panas are converted to Christianity. The problem cropped up after Panas started demanding rights as enjoyed by the Kandha tribe. Kandhas alleged that Panas have grabbed their land.

At the meeting, Patnaik also mentioned that a Special Administrator had been appointed to address the long standing problems of the people of Kandhamal as well as to oversee implementation of a special package for the district."Kandhamal has practically not had any violent incident for the last 10 days due to the presence of police forces," he said, adding that the entire nation must fight hatred, fanaticism and recrimination.

"Orissa has an excellent track record of peace and harmony and is remarkably free of considerations of casteism and communalism," he said, adding that in its more than eight years of incumbency, his Government had not had any violence in the entire State except for the two unfortunate incidents in one of the State's 30 districts namely, Kandhamal in December, 2007 and in August, 2008.Condemning the violence, he said more than 1,000 persons have been arrested out of which more than 500 were from the district of Kandhamal alone. "The Crime branch is investigating these incidents. It has made significant progress and arrested three persons involved in the murder of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati," he said.

Describing the rape of a nun as a "shameful and barbaric incident", he stated that eight persons have been arrested in connection with this case and prompt action has been taken against police officials who have neglected their duty. "A judicial enquiry has been ordered into the incidents," he said.Mentioning that the incidents in Kandhamal were happening in the backdrop of the worst floods in the post-Independence history of Orissa, Patnaik urged the Government of India for Central assistance for more than four million people who have been affected by the floods.

Responding to the discussion on extremism, he mentioned that over 15,000 posts have been created in the Orissa police during the last three years which was an increase of 30 per cent.He requested the Government of India to accept the long standing demand of the State Government for deployment of four more battalions of CRPF for at least two years in order to assist the State Governments efforts to fight extremism.

State earmarks over Rs 600 cr to protect seashore villages from cyclone threat

PNS | Bhubaneswar

The State Government has decided to include all villages within five km radius of the seashore under the disaster mitigation plan. Special plan would be chalked out to protect the villages from the possible onslaught of the cyclone. Rs 609.40 crore has been earmarked for this purpose.It would be implemented under the aegis of the National Cyclone Disaster Mitigation Project (NCDMP) plan. The villages near the Chilka lake will also be included in the programme.
A total of 311 villages of Puri district, 194 villages of Kendrapara, 76 villages in Jagatsingpur, 217 villages in Balasore and 18 villages in Ganjam district would be included in the plan.While the Centre would bear nearly 75 per cent of the total expenses, the rest would be borne by the State Government.

Rs 190 crore will be spent on the repair of the saline embankment which has been created by the rising sea tide, Rs 130 crore to be spent on building cyclone centres, Rs 195 crore for connecting roads to the village having less than 500 population, Rs 23.03 crore to be spent of protection of mangrove forest, Rs 17.68 crore on creating awareness on super cyclone and Rs 53.69 crore to be spent on implementation of the project.Water proof high frequency mobile would be given to fishermen.In each village, one VHF would be installed. All the VHF would be run by battery. Special cyclone centres would be built for the fishermen. Fishermen would be provided 10,000 boats and life-jackets.

In this connection, OSDMA sent a proposal of Rs 400.67 crore to the NDMA which was later approved by it. A World Bank team has already visited the cyclone prone areas.Meanwhile, Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy on Monday held a high-level meeting to chalk out plan to meet any possible cyclone in the coming days.Indian Metrological Department (IMD) presented a documentation on how can people be saved during super cyclone and how can it be predicted.Orissa generally witnesses cyclone from March to May and October to first week of December.

Friday, July 25, 2008

Ravenshaw students burn Soren's effigy

Pioneer News Service | Cuttack

The students of Ravenshaw University on Thursday burnt the effigy of JMM supremo Sibu Soren terming his demand for a greater Jharkhand as unethical.The students said that they will not allow any division of their mother land and if the Central Government colluded with Soren, students would intensify the stir.
The students union president Prafulla Kumar Naik said that districts like Keonjhar, Sundargarh and Mayurbhanj are considered as minng belt and lot of industries were there. If the Union Government considered Soren's demand, it will affect the State economy, so he urged the State's student to protest.Among others, students leaders Diptiranjan Mallick, Smrutiranjan Dash, Dipun Das also spoke.

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Tata Steel plans Rs 675-cr power plant in Orissa .

The Economic Times,Kolkata:

TATA Steel is setting up a Rs 675-crore coal-fired power station in Orissa in alliance with Hyderabadbased Jasper Industries. The proposed plant of 2 x 67.5 mw capacity will meet the steel major’s captive power requirement.Along with its wholly-owned subsidiary Rawmet Ferrous Industries, Tata Steel has entered into a share subscription and shareholders’ agreement with Jasper Industries for the venture, the steel major said in a filing to the Bombay stock exchange (BSE) on Monday.Following the shareholders’ agreement, Tata Steel and Rawmet would together pick up 26% in the new company, Bhubaneswar Power while Jasper Industries will hold a controlling 74% stake, the steel major noted. Incidentally, Jasper Industries is a dealer of cars and commercial vehicles for Tata Motors. Based in Hyderabad, Jasper shares a long association with the Tata Group auto company.
“This is our first foray into the power sector. We share old ties with the Tata group. This venture will be helpful for both the partners,” a Jasper Industries source said. “Some 60% of the power generated will be used for Tata Steel’s captive ferro alloy units in Orissa. The remaining 40% will be given to the state grid,” the source added.Coal required for the project will be supplied by Mahanadi Coalfields (MCL) from Talcher. “The power plant will need around one million tonne of coal per annum. We have already been provided linkages for coal supply,” the source said.
The project is expected to achieve financial closure within the next couple of months. The plant will come up at Anantpur village, around 20 km from Cuttack, Orissa. The shareholders’ agreement is subject to the fulfilment of certain conditions, Tata Steel said in the statement.

Saturday, June 14, 2008

Berhampur Varsity to start Astrology course.

Pioneer News Service | Berhampur
The Berhampur University, for the first time in Orissa, has decided to introduce astrology as a subject under the distance education system from the current academic session.According to sources, the course of studies and the regulation for the one-year postgraduate diploma in Jyotirvidya were formulated on Thursday at the meeting of the Board of Studies of the university held under the chairmanship of noted astrologer Nimai Banarjee.
The other members of the committee are retired professors Tara Prasad Mohapatra and Mayadhar Sahu, KC Acharya, Dhaneswar Das and Pradeep Kumar Subudhi.The sources said the course is likely to be started from this year after the approval of the course of studies and regulations by the university's Academic Council.

Sudarsan Pattnaik bags first prize at Berlin Sand Art Championship

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar
Orissa's well-known sand artiste Sudarsan Pattnaik has bagged the first prize for his 25-feet-high sculpture on global warming at the USF World Double Championship in Berlin on Thursday. The second and third prizes were won by artistes from the US and the Netherlands, respectively.
Pattnaik sculpted a polar bear on top of a globe praying save my family, and beneath the sculpture were three different faces representing Africa, Europe and Asia. Pattnaik and his student Jitendra Kishore Jagadev were the only Indian representatives in the championship.
Sand artistes from 12 countries, including India, Denmark, Germany, the US, the UK, Spain, Holland, Japan, Belgium, Morocco, Italy and France, participated in the championship organised by Sandsation. The sand carving began on June 5 and ended on June 12. The sculptures would, however, remain for public display for another couple of weeks in Berlin.
It may be noted that Pattnaik recently won the People's Choice Prize at the Moscow international sand sculpture championship, in which he had also created a sand art based on global warming. He had also won the first prize at the Berlin competition in 2005 with a 15-feet-high sculpture titled World Peace that depicted Mahatma Gandhi with three monkeys.

Friday, June 13, 2008

Ravenshaw students hold demonstration .

The Hindu,Cuttack: Hundreds of students of Ravenshaw University staged a demonstration in the university campus on Thursday over the State government’s decision to slash the seats in the arts stream of graduation and post graduation courses of the university from this year.The students under the banner of Democratic Students Organisation (DSO) came in a rally from the railway station in the morning and held protest meeting inside the campus. The students later handed over a memorandum to the Registrar .The students are demanding immediate revoke of the government notification reducing the number of seats in the university. They are also demanding that the ongoing admission process be stalled until the impugned notification is withdrawn.

Meanwhile the Oriya students studying in New Delhi under the banner of Delhi Odia Students’ Association (DOSA) have also criticized the government’s decision to slash the seats in the Arts stream of the famous Ravenshaw University. In a release, the DOSA convener Tejeswar Parida has flayed the decision and has called for increase in number of seats in Arts stream by recruiting more teachers.

DOSA opposed Ravenshaw University seat Reduction .

SEAT REDUCTION IN ARTS STREAM IN RAVENSHAW UNIVERSITY IS OPPOSED BY DELHI ORIYA STUDENTS’ ASSOCIATION (DOSA)


Sir/Madam,

It is very sad and unfortunate that the authorities of prestigious Ravenshaw University have reduced the the seats in Arts stream of both undergraduate and post graduate courses by 256 and 80 respectively. While for BA(Hons) seats are reduced in Economics(112 to 64),English(96 to 64),Political Science(112 to 64),History(112 to64) and Oriya(80 to 64), for MA course the number of seats are reduced in Economics(104 to 64) and English(104 to64) by 40 in each subject .The authority is taking the plea of decreasing quality of education with more number of students , increasing the number of seats in self financing courses, seats lying vacant in Arts stream, that the reduced seats used to be in the former Ravenshaw Morning College and inadequate number of teachers in the University which are the easy escapes of the University authority from the real solution.

Answering these pleas Delhi Oriya Students Association (DOSA) which comprise of a large number of old Ravenshavians want a response from Ravenshaw University authority and the Govt. of Orissa that

1. Why the University authority is feeling that the 256 students of BA(Hons) and 80 students of MA(Economics and English) were the liabilities or extra burdens on Ravenshaw ?

2. Has the University authority taken any major initiatives like Orientation Programmes for students at the beginning of educational year, special coaching facility for the students scoring less marks in Internal examinations,free and compulsory soft skill development classes etc. to improve the quality of education among these so called extra students for which seats are no more available from this year ?

3. How many Campus Recruitment Camps exclusively for BA and MA students were organised by the University every year to motivate these students ?

4. If there is a shortage of teachers in the University why Ad hoc teachers were not recruited for these Departments ?

5.There is no reasonable link between decreasing seats in BA and MA courses and increasing seats in self financing courses, where a meritorious but economically poor student can not get the opportunity to take admission. As old Ravenshavians we have seen and observed so many cases every year.

6.Students do not join Ravenshaw only to get Govt. or Pvt. jobs and earn huge amount of money.Many students join there to be good citizens, to be in a good intellectual environment ,to get better peer socialization, to be politicians, to be writers, poets, creative thinkers, social workers and above all to be Swabhimani Odias.

7.If the seats were added from the former Ravenshaw Morning College then it must be known that Ravenshaw Morning College was an inseparable part of Ravenshaw and abolishing the seats saying that these were of the Ravenshaw Morning College will be very much unacceptable.

8. Yes, it is a fact that very less number of students are on the street today in protest, but the reasons are many .As there is a vacation most students are outside and is difficult to be organized, The annual/semester examinations of UG and PG classes are starting from next week, most of the present and old Ravenshavian students, teachers are unaware of this Reduction of Seats in Arts Stream. So as the days progress gradually the Opposition to the Seat Reduction is spreading rapidly.

9. How the BA and MA students will show their potentials at the national level when many problems are not solved by Ravenshaw authority, such as

a) The entrance examination dates of Ravenshaw is clashing with that of the other top institutions like Delhi University which does not allow Ravenshaw Arts students to join Delhi University in large number. So without solving this problem how can the University authority question the quality of Arts students in Ravenshaw ?
b) If it is true that very very few seats are vacant in Ravenshaw then it is the University authority who are to be blamed and saying that students are not available will never be accepted. What steps the University authority has taken till today to solve this problem?

10.Ravenshaw authorities are saying that seats for BA are lying vacant .But truth is different. The results of CHSE +2 Arts results were declared. Total 3582 students have scored more than 60%(1st division), 15,470 students scored between 50% to 60%(2nd division).In Ravenshaw Junior College only about 219 students scored more than 50%,including the All Orissa Topper Ms Swayamshree Mishra ,while in Cuttack City alone more than 600 students scored more than 50%.On the other hand the eligibility criteria to seat in the Ravenshaw University UG entrance is only 40% marks in +2 exam.

11. Another fact is that large number students from +2 Science and Commerce with good marks join Arts in UG. .It is a well known fact that students all over Orissa give Ravenshaw their 1st preference. Even many students from West Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar prefer Ravenshaw as their 1st choice for BA and MA courses. So how it is true that seats in Ravenshaw remain vacant ?

12.This decision to reduce seats in Ravenshaw Arts Departments which has produced so many Chief Ministers of Orissa, IAS/IPS and Allied Service Officers, State Officers, Thinkers, Social Workers, Politicians, Educationists, Writers, Actors, Play Writers, Journalists, Army Officers, Artists, top Businessmen and other successful persons in their respective spheres is a huge emotional shock for every Odia who feel proud of Ravenshaw.

With due respect to the Vice Chancellor Mr.Devdas Chhotray who was also a student of Ravenshaw , Delhi Oriya Students Association (DOSA) members are demanding Ravenshaw University authorities to withdraw the notification to reduce the seats in BA(Hons) and MA classes.

Thanking You


Tejeswar Parida,
Convenor,DOSA
Mob-09999974473 (delhi)
9937125322 (Orissa)

DELHI ORIYA STUDENTS' ASSOCIATION (DOSA)
168,INDIRA VIHAR
DELHI-110009
visit us at : www.contactdosa.blogspot.com

DOSA opposed Ravenshaw University seat Reduction .

SEAT REDUCTION IN ARTS STREAM IN RAVENSHAW UNIVERSITY IS OPPOSED BY DELHI ORIYA STUDENTS’ ASSOCIATION (DOSA)


Sir/Madam,

It is very sad and unfortunate that the authorities of prestigious Ravenshaw University have reduced the the seats in Arts stream of both undergraduate and post graduate courses by 256 and 80 respectively. While for BA(Hons) seats are reduced in Economics(112 to 64),English(96 to 64),Political Science(112 to 64),History(112 to64) and Oriya(80 to 64), for MA course the number of seats are reduced in Economics(104 to 64) and English(104 to64) by 40 in each subject .The authority is taking the plea of decreasing quality of education with more number of students , increasing the number of seats in self financing courses, seats lying vacant in Arts stream, that the reduced seats used to be in the former Ravenshaw Morning College and inadequate number of teachers in the University which are the easy escapes of the University authority from the real solution.

Answering these pleas Delhi Oriya Students Association (DOSA) which comprise of a large number of old Ravenshavians want a response from Ravenshaw University authority and the Govt. of Orissa that

1. Why the University authority is feeling that the 256 students of BA(Hons) and 80 students of MA(Economics and English) were the liabilities or extra burdens on Ravenshaw ?

2. Has the University authority taken any major initiatives like Orientation Programmes for students at the beginning of educational year, special coaching facility for the students scoring less marks in Internal examinations,free and compulsory soft skill development classes etc. to improve the quality of education among these so called extra students for which seats are no more available from this year ?

3. How many Campus Recruitment Camps exclusively for BA and MA students were organised by the University every year to motivate these students ?

4. If there is a shortage of teachers in the University why Ad hoc teachers were not recruited for these Departments ?

5.There is no reasonable link between decreasing seats in BA and MA courses and increasing seats in self financing courses, where a meritorious but economically poor student can not get the opportunity to take admission. As old Ravenshavians we have seen and observed so many cases every year.

6.Students do not join Ravenshaw only to get Govt. or Pvt. jobs and earn huge amount of money.Many students join there to be good citizens, to be in a good intellectual environment ,to get better peer socialization, to be politicians, to be writers, poets, creative thinkers, social workers and above all to be Swabhimani Odias.

7.If the seats were added from the former Ravenshaw Morning College then it must be known that Ravenshaw Morning College was an inseparable part of Ravenshaw and abolishing the seats saying that these were of the Ravenshaw Morning College will be very much unacceptable.

8. Yes, it is a fact that very less number of students are on the street today in protest, but the reasons are many .As there is a vacation most students are outside and is difficult to be organized, The annual/semester examinations of UG and PG classes are starting from next week, most of the present and old Ravenshavian students, teachers are unaware of this Reduction of Seats in Arts Stream. So as the days progress gradually the Opposition to the Seat Reduction is spreading rapidly.

9. How the BA and MA students will show their potentials at the national level when many problems are not solved by Ravenshaw authority, such as

a) The entrance examination dates of Ravenshaw is clashing with that of the other top institutions like Delhi University which does not allow Ravenshaw Arts students to join Delhi University in large number. So without solving this problem how can the University authority question the quality of Arts students in Ravenshaw ?
b) If it is true that very very few seats are vacant in Ravenshaw then it is the University authority who are to be blamed and saying that students are not available will never be accepted. What steps the University authority has taken till today to solve this problem?

10.Ravenshaw authorities are saying that seats for BA are lying vacant .But truth is different. The results of CHSE +2 Arts results were declared. Total 3582 students have scored more than 60%(1st division), 15,470 students scored between 50% to 60%(2nd division).In Ravenshaw Junior College only about 219 students scored more than 50%,including the All Orissa Topper Ms Swayamshree Mishra ,while in Cuttack City alone more than 600 students scored more than 50%.On the other hand the eligibility criteria to seat in the Ravenshaw University UG entrance is only 40% marks in +2 exam.

11. Another fact is that large number students from +2 Science and Commerce with good marks join Arts in UG. .It is a well known fact that students all over Orissa give Ravenshaw their 1st preference. Even many students from West Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar prefer Ravenshaw as their 1st choice for BA and MA courses. So how it is true that seats in Ravenshaw remain vacant ?

12.This decision to reduce seats in Ravenshaw Arts Departments which has produced so many Chief Ministers of Orissa, IAS/IPS and Allied Service Officers, State Officers, Thinkers, Social Workers, Politicians, Educationists, Writers, Actors, Play Writers, Journalists, Army Officers, Artists, top Businessmen and other successful persons in their respective spheres is a huge emotional shock for every Odia who feel proud of Ravenshaw.

With due respect to the Vice Chancellor Mr.Devdas Chhotray who was also a student of Ravenshaw , Delhi Oriya Students Association (DOSA) members are demanding Ravenshaw University authorities to withdraw the notification to reduce the seats in BA(Hons) and MA classes.

Thanking You


Tejeswar Parida,
Convenor,DOSA
Mob-09999974473 (delhi)
9937125322 (Orissa)

DELHI ORIYA STUDENTS' ASSOCIATION (DOSA)
168,INDIRA VIHAR
DELHI-110009
visit us at : www.contactdosa.blogspot.com

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Odias in Jharkhand feel let down .

Odia people in Jharkhand have accused that government of adopting a step-motherly attitude towards their linguistic and cultural identity.A delegation of Jamshedpur-based Utkal Association met Revenue Minister M.M.Samal and Law Minister B.B. Harichandan here recently and presented a memorandum; copies of which were also sent to the Chief Ministers of both the states.
The memorandum states that although Odias are natives of the state and are having a dominant population in some regions; Odia is yet to be declared as the second official language in Jharkhand despite repeated demands.The memorandum further says that there are a large number of Odia schools and socio-cultural institutions of the Odias in Jharkhand while people observe a number of Oriya fairs and festivals. But the government does not provide any patronage to such institutions and activities, it alleged.
During the discussion with both the ministers, the delegation demanded that Odisha government should take up the matter with its Jharkhand counterpart for its earliest settlement.Sources informed that during the tenure of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Arjun Munda, a Cabinet decision was taken to recognize Odia as the second official language but the resolution is yet to be implemented. Mr. Munda, who called on Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik here recently, assured that he would ensure implementation of the decision when his party would rule the state.

Dhamra Port not to affect Olive Ridley turtles: PFA.

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar
The Kendrapara unit of the People for Animals (PFA) has discarded the allegation of some organisations that the upcoming Dhamra Port would adversely affect the travelling and nesting of Olive Ridley sea turtles.
The proposed Dhamra Port is located at the north of Dhamra river under Josinga gram panchayat of Chandbali block in the district of Bhadrak. It has been alleged by some organisations that the presence of Olive Ridley turtles near the locality of the port would be badly affected by the port.
Responding to the allegation, a PFA team visited the spot and observed that the muddy north beach of Dhamra is unsuitable for habitation and nesting of turtles. The Gahirmatha nesting location is more than 25 km away through the coastal sea route from the port. Even two major rivers, Mahipura and Dhamra, separate Gahirmatha and the port. There are a lot of land masses between the two locations, including Kalinga and Wheeler Islands.
These obstacles result in not a single turtle crossing Maipura river. Again, the PFA also claimed that the Paradip Port is on the way of Olive Ridley turtles' travel path to Gahirmatha, but Dhamra Port limit does not come along the turtle travel path.

Govt Aviation Training Institute to be revived.

The State Government has decided to revive the Government Aviation Training Institute which has been closed since 2005. Global Avionatics, the sister organisation of the Ahamadabad Aviation and Aeronautics Limited has come forward to revive the institution.Nandalal Bhatia, CMD of the Company called on Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in this regard and held a detailed and elaborate discussion on Tuesday.
The institute would be revived through the PPP mode. An agreement to this effect would be made in July. In the first phase, one batch would start. In each batch, 15 students would be accommodated."We will put the aviation industry of Orissa into the world map," said Bhatia after meeting the Chief Minister. But he did not divulge much about the discussion.
Meanwhile, the State Government has proceeded to set up an air strip in Jharsuguda. The Air Port Authority of India asked the State Government to provide 800 acre of land for this purpose.

Monday, June 9, 2008

Start IIT Orissa classes at Kharagpur, argue educationists.

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar

The move of the BJD-BJP Government to begin classes of IIT Orissa at a makeshift location would be a blunder, cautioned leading educationists. Minister of Industries Biswabhusan Harichandan seems adamant to start IIT Orissa classes at the CET Campus in Bhubaneswar, where there are no proper facilities, they argued.Expressing their reaction to the decision, two leading non-resident Oriyas, Prof Chitta Baral and Digambara Patra, have appealed to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik not to allow such casualness. Baral, who is an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur, said it would be a big mistake to start the IIT Orissa classes at a make-shift location.
He said it is important to have the first year of class in IIT Kharagpur as it would allow the students to bring some of the good cultural aspects of the established IITs to IIT Orissa. For example, in IIT Kharagpur, junior students and senior students are equal. A junior student does not call a senior student a 'big brother' or a 'bhai' or a 'Sir.'
In IIT Kharagpur, no student is afraid of any other student and there is zero 'goondagiri' or 'dadagiri' in the campus. Such a fear-free atmosphere is very important. There are many other good cultural aspects of IIT Kharagpur, which the first batch of IIT Orissa students can bring back to Orissa when the permanent campus of the new IIT is ready. Some of the other cultural highlights of IIT Kharagpur are its hostel libraries, some of which have more books than many colleges in Orissa, Baral argued.
On the other hand, the existing colleges such as CET Bhubaneswar have their own culture and by having the IIT Orissa students starting their class in CET Bhubaneswar they will be copying the culture of CET rather than the culture of an IIT, he said, adding that it is of paramount importance that the first batch of IIT Orissa spends one year in Kharagpur.
Similarly, Patra said he also strongly feels that IIT Orissa should function at IIT Kharagpur campus for the time being. At least for the couple of years since it would help IIT Orissa get hold of better quality students and faculties. He said the State Government should pursue with the Union HRD Ministry on how the IIT Orissa campus is built in an expeditious manner.

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Setting up IIT in Orissa : State identifies land near Banki,Cuttack.

Pragativadi,BBSR:
The state government has identified 1200 acres of land in between Dampada and Talabasta under Banki sub-division in Cuttack district for setting up of the Indian Institute of Technology while it has selected the College of Engineering and Technology (CET) in Bhubaneswar to start the academic session of the said institute instead at Kharagpur.A decision to this effect was taken at a high-level meeting presided over by industry minister Biswabhusan Harichandan at the State Secretariat here on Saturday.Among others, chief secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy, principal secretary, industry Chinmoy Basu, vice chancellor of Biju Patnaik University of Technology Prof Omkar Mohanty and senior officials of the concerned departments were present at the meeting.
Briefing newsmen after the meeting, the minister said that the Centre had given a condition that the institution should be located closer to the airport, National Highways and railway station.The selected site is only 62 km from the Bhubaneswar airport and would take one hour drive from the state capital to reach there, he said, adding that though the Centre wants only 600 acres of land for this purpose, the state wants to give more land to make it a world-class institution.
In order to begin classes from this year, he said the Government has decided to provide the campus of College of Engineering and Technology (CET), Bhubaneswar, to start classes of IIT from the current academic year.Eighteen quarters will be converted to students' hostel within 15 days, he said, adding that students would be allowed to use their laboratory after 2 PM.Some arrangements would be made to this effect so that the students would use all the facilities available in the CET.
On the question of availability of required number of faculties, he said that the guest lectures would be arranged from the Institute of Mathematics and NISER also.
We have already met all the conditions laid down by the Centre.We hope that the IIT in Orissa would begin functioning from the current session, he said.
However, the state government and its officials are still uncertain about the exact number of students that are going to take admission this year.We don't have got any clear information at official level from the Centre, said Basu, adding that as per the unconfirmed students over 100 students are likely to get admission in IIT, Orissa.

IIT to be set up in Banki,Cuttack.

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar

Though every one in the State is happy over the fact that an IIT will begin to function from the State in the current academic year, but uncertainty prevails there. "We have complied with all the guidelines of the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development on setting up an IIT. But they have to take the final decision on this issue," said Secretary, Industries Chinmoy Basu, adding that the State Government would soon send a detailed proposal to the Centre.Sources said a section of officials in the IIT wants that it should not be allowed to operate from the State in the current academic year, rather in should run in the campus of the IIT, Khargapur. As Saturday is an off-day in the Centre, the State Government will likely to send the proposal on Monday.
However, the State Government held a detailed and elaborate discussion on setting up the IIT in the State. A high-level meeting to this effect was held under the chairmanship of Industries Minister Biswabhusan Harichandan on Saturday.Briefing the media, Harichandan said the Government has identified 1,200 acres of land near Banki for setting up the world-class institution. This would be set up in an area between Dampada and Talabasta road near Banki.The Centre had given a condition that the institution should be located closer to the Airport, National Highways and Railway station. "Its only 62 km from the Bhubaneswar Airport and would take one hour drive from the State capital to reach there," he said, adding that though the Centre wants only 600 acres of land for this purpose, the State wants to give more land to make it a world-class institution.
In order to begin classes from this year, he said the Government has decided to provide the campus of College of Engineering and Technology (CET), Bhubaneswar, to start classes of IIT from the current academic year. "Eighteen quarters will be converted to students' hostel within 15 days," he said, adding that students would be allowed to use their laboratory after 2 pm. Some arrangements would be made to this effect so that the students would use all the facilities available in the CET.
On the question of availability of required number of faculties, he said guest lectures would be arranged from the Institute of Mathematics and NISER also. "We have already met all the conditions laid down by the Centre. We hope that the IIT in Orissa would begin functioning from the current session," he said.
However, the State Government and its officials are still uncertain about the exact number of students that are going to take admission this year. "We don't have got any clear information at official level from the Centre," said Secretary Industries Basu, adding that as per the unconfirmed students over 100 students are likely to get admission in IIT, Orissa.Sources said a section of officials in the Centre and IIT have begun to oppose that the IIT should not be allowed run from this year.

Saturday, June 7, 2008

Finally, Centre declares IIT Bhubaneswar .

After dillydallying over the place of the proposed Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Orissa, the Government of India has declared it as IIT Bhubaneswar.
The website http://www.jee.iitb.ac.in has carried the list of the proposed six new IITs, in which classes will begin between end week of July and first week of August. The website carried the admission to new IITs, saying the Government of India has announced setting up of eight more new IITs.
However, admission in the latest six new IITs is likely to take place during the counselling session of the Joint Entrance Examination-2008, subject to the approval of the competent authority of the Government of India. The list includes IIT Bhubaneswar, whose mentor will be IIT Kharagpur.
The new IIT Bhubaneswar will have 120 seats in three streams such as Civil, Electrical and Mechanical Engineering. The programme will start from July 24 in the IIT Kharagpur campus.

Orissa at top among investment destinations in India.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is basking in the glory of a finding that Orissa, among the States, is the number one destination for investments. The State has ranked first in terms of value of total envisaged projects. It has been successful to attract Rs 5,99,181 crore for the period ending December, 2007.The analyses of CapEX database of the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) reveal the fact. Maharashtra and Gujarat have stepped down to allow Orissa to be the numero uno. Orissa also ranks first in terms of value of total projects under implementation in the country.
As on date, Rs 3,08,589 crore worth of projects are implemented in the State, which is much higher than that of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Haryana. These four States are also attracting huge investments and implementing the projects.
There are altogether 483 projects envisaged with a total project cost of Rs 5,99,181 as on January 1, 2008. Out of this, 52 per cent projects are being implemented and 48percent projects amounting to Rs 2,90,592 crore are in the "announced"stage.
The investment projects in the State include the sectors like steel, aluminum road, power, port, mining, railways and tourism. In the manufacturing sector, aluminum, ferroalloys, steel and refinery are the main areas attracting investments. The State has attracted major investments in power generation, reports the CMIE.

IDCOL in expansion mode: Two steel complexes planned at Jajpur Road and Barbil.

Managing Director of the Industrial Development Corporation Orissa Limited (IDCOL) Ashok Kumar Meena is eager for big ticket investment by the State-run undertaking. He sees a big picture for the IDCOL in the steel sector.Meena has asked MECON to prepare a perspective plan for the IDCOL to set up two steel complexes at Jajpur Road and Barbil. While a 1-lakh-tonne-per-annum stainless steel project is envisaged at Jajpur Road, a pig iron, sponge iron and steel melting unit has also been planned, said an official.
IDCOL has come out of red and will invest more than Rs.1,000 crore in both steel complexes. During 2007-08, the IDCOL registered more than cent per cent capacity utilisation in both its existing plants at Jajpur Road and Barbil. The last fiscal saw the IDCOL turnover crossing Rs 500 crore and cash surplus being more than Rs 100 crore.
In 2008-09, the IDCOL is planning for a turnover of Rs 800 to Rs 1,000 crore and a cash surplus of Rs 200 to Rs 250 crore, said a financial analyst. The IDCOL's mining operations have also produced positive results, and with the success rate being high, the corporation is asking for more iron ore and chrome ore mines to cater to its expansion plans.

Jindal to supply free saplings in periphery villages in Angul.

Pioneer News Service | Angul:
Private-sector industrial establishments seem to be more concerned about protection of environment to keep the people of periphery villages in good humour than most of the public sector units at Angul, including Nalco, which are neglecting the pollution control measures. Several public sector units have been told by the Rehabilitation and Periphery Development Committee to minimise the pollution and go for an extensive plantation programme around their plants.
"JSPL (Jindal Steel and Power Limited) will distribute free saplings in all peripheral villages of its project to assist people in creating a green environment," said JSPL ED Rajesh Jha while addressing a large gathering on the occasion of celebration of the World Environment Day at village Nisha. He expressed his concern over global warming and said that JSPL is committed to an environment-friendly project at Angul.
Jha said pollution would be substantially controlled at JSPL by adopting the coal gasification technology. Addressing the gathering, Angul Sub-Collector S Parida stressed upon corporate social responsibility of the industries. An awareness rally on environment protection was also organised on the occasion.The management of the Talcher Thermal Power Project also observed the World Environment Day. A mass tree plantation was undertaken at Nakula Chandra School of Deaf and Dumb.

Losers oppose Essar's compensation package in Jagatsinghpur.

Pioneer News Service | Jagatsinghpur
People, who lost their land in the acquisition for the proposed Essar Steel project in Jagatsingpur district, have expressed dissatisfaction over the land prices fixed by the company in recent rehabilitation and periphery development advisory committee meeting held in the Collectorate here on Wednesday.Senior officials including Collector PK Meherda, project director of the company HS Sethy, four MLAs and MP of Jagatsinghpur district discussed the progress of the project work in the meeting, which was chaired by the Revenue Divisional Commissioner SN Sarangi.Participants of the meeting stressed on suitable compensation for the land losers and proper implementation of the R&R policy of the State Government.
About four years ago the State Government had signed MoU with Eassar Company for setting up the proposed steel plant in Paradip. But the project proceeds slow owing to the land acquisition process becoming a hurdle for the company.
Official reports reveal that about 1,925 acres of land are required for the project and only 103 acres of land have been provided by the Government. Rest 1,625 acres of private land would be acquired from the residents of Nuagada, Bijayachandpur and Udyabata villages.Meanwhile, the company has successfully conducted socio-economic survey of the people near the project site and found about 909 families to be affected for the project.Company officials said the land price to have been fixed in three categories in different villages. Lands in Udayabata village have been fixed to be Rs 17 lakh per acre followed by Rs 10 lakh per acre in Nuagada and Rs 12 lakh per acre in Bijyachandpur villages.
However, the villagers opposed the land price fixed by the company and say the ongoing price of the lands are much higher.The project director on the other hand said about 5500 local people would get employment and as many as 10,000 people would be benefited through employment generation works.However, Sarangi directed the company officials to revise the land prices.

State doubles Calamity Relief .

The Hindu Bhubaneswar :
With the monsoon round the corner and so also floods, the State government on Friday decided to double the quantum of relief material for victims of natural calamity.
A decision to this effect was taken in the State Natural Calamity Committee meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the Secretariat here.Briefing media persons after the meeting, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Manmohan Samal said that he per-head relief material would be increased from 500 gram to 1 kg for adult and from 250 gram to 500 gram for child. The per-head expenditure on account of providing cooked food for adult was doubled from Rs. 10 to Rs. 20 while for children it was raised from Rs. 8 to Rs. 15, Mr. Samal said.
Similarly, the State government said it was fully prepared to meet any emergency. “We have already procured 200 tonnes of polythene while breaches on different river and canal embankments in flood-prone areas will be repaired by June 15,” he said.Moreover, some Rs. 60 crores was released from the Calamity Relief Fund and provided to different district administrations for spending on storing food material in panchayat godowns, Mr. Samal said.

Rehabilitation

In another major step, the government also decided to extend its rehabilitation package to those who would be affected by change of courses by rivers in different areas.Besides, anti-cyclone infrastructures would be created in seven districts with an estimated expenditure of Rs. 609.40 crore. “We are providing 25 per cent share in the Central assisted programme,” Mr. Samal said.According to the committee, as many as 34 persons lost their lives after being struck by lightning in 2008 while sunstroke deaths were put at 50.The Minister said emphasis had been given to put in place early warning systems in all districts, which were traditionally ravaged by floods.Secretaries of Revenue and Disaster Management Department, Agriculture and representatives of Orissa State Disaster Mitigation Authority were present

Orissa to introduce SRI farming .

It requires 30 per cent less water and seed
Initially it is being launched in a few villages on experimental basis
Government seeks partnerships with farmers, individuals and NGOs
The Hindu,Bhubaneswar: The Orissa Government has decided to introduce the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) farming in a few villages before taking it in a big way to other districts in the State.Speaking at a workshop to mark the launching of project on up-scaling SRI in the State, Director of Agriculture and Food Production Arabinda Padhee said the department would go for SRI farming by taking a village as an unit in order to encourage others.
The Centre for World Solidarity (CWS), a non-government organisation and Mumbai-based Sir Dorabji Tata Trust have partnered with NGOs to reach out to 7,000 farmers in 355 villages, covering 3,000 acres with the SRI farming in six districts in Orissa.The project is initially being implemented in six south-eastern districts such as Rayagada, Gajapati, Ganjam, Nayagarh and Cuttack.
Top agriculture researchers, officials of agriculture department and farmers attended the workshop.Mr. Padhee said everybody had misconception that organic farming yield less but it had been documented that the productivity in SRI farming increased. Government would seek partnerships with farmers, individuals as well as NGOs to experiment the system and spread it different districts, he said.
Addressing the farmers, former information commissioner and a prominent advocate of SRI farming Prof Radhamohan said this particular farming required 30 per cent less water and seed. “SRI is a huge success in some of teh villages in Ganjam and Koraput district.Even tribals have started accepting the SRI method of agriculture in their fields,” he said.
Prof. Radhamohan emphasised on proper coordination between the government agencies and farmers to take up the SRI farming in all the districts.“The project aims to improve livelihood of small and marginal farmers through efficient management of various factors of crop production and increase productivity, profitability and innovation in SRI, the alternative farming system approach,” CWS coordinator Rekha Panigrahi said.

Plantation drive in Talcher industrial belt.10 lakh saplings to be planted.

New Indian Express,Talcher:
At least 10 lakh saplings would be planted in the Talcher industrial belt during monsoon season to combat the rising temperature in the area, said Angul District Collector Girish. S.N.
After a high-level meeting with all the operating Central public and private sector units here, the Collector said of the 10 lakh saplings Forest Department will plant eight lakh trees, while industries will plant two lakh saplings in July. Around Rs 50lakh will be spent by the industries for the two lakh trees, he said adding, the cost would be shared among them.
According to Sub-Collector Nirmal Mishra, MCL will plant 50,000 saplings, the highest, followed by NTPC 25,000. The three private sector units have agreed to plant 5,000 trees each. The decision was taken considering the rising temperature at Talcher during summer.

Friday, June 6, 2008

Demand for 'Commerce' subject on the rise in the State.

Ravenshaw takes more students in the stream

Students eager to cash in on employability

The Hindu,BHUBANESWAR: Gone are the days when students joined the commerce stream only after seats in the science and arts subjects were filled in different colleges. With the admission season peaking, the demand for commerce is increasing. This is prompting college authorities to seek increase in seat strength in the subject. BJB Junior College, a leading college of the State, has been sending representations seeking increase in number of seats from the existing 128 in the higher secondary level.
“We are even prepared to downsize the strength of arts stream to strengthen the Commerce Department,” said P.C Rath, principal of BJB Junior College. While the college had 512 seats in the arts and 544 in the science streams, there are only 128 seats for commerce in the Plus Two level.
Ravenshaw Junior College, Cuttack, has already taken an initiative to accommodate more students in the commerce stream. Bhubaneswar-based Rama Devi Autonomous College doubled its commerce strength last year.The Higher Education Department seems to have not woken up to the situation. When employability of students in commerce subject is growing astronomically, the department is dragging the process of sanctioning more seats in commerce wing.
On an average, 1,25,000 students appear for Plus Two Arts examination conducted by the Council for Higher Secondary Education (CHSE) all over the State every year. Some 55,000 students appear for the science examination. Compared to these two subjects, only 15,000 students sit for commerce examination.
Mr. Rath said students as well as parents were more than eager to take advantage. Another trend suggests that demand for commerce in the graduation level was also fast catching up. In Rama Devi College, out of 127 students who appeared for Plus Two Commerce examination this year, 125 students passed while 87 secured first division. “Students are aware of the prospects and its employability. They can opt for CA, CS, etc.,” said Sanjay Satpathy, reader in Commerce in Rama Devi College.

State to fill over 9,000 posts .

Naveen Patnaik chairs a meeting of secretaries of various departments

Indicating removal of restrictions on making regular appointments in the government sector by 2009, the State government on Thursday decided to fill 9,200 posts, including 371 doctor, 434 constable and 319 junior engineer.Official sources said that the decision to fill the posts, which were vacant in 31 different departments, was taken at a meeting of secretaries chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.“The Chief Minister asked the secretaries that developmental activities should not be affected due to lack of employees,” an official spokesman said.

MoU with Centre

r. Patnaik directed the senior officials that posts should be filled within a specific time frame.The government had been working to fill 35,808 posts since September 2007.As many as 44,893 base posts under different departments were abolished ever since the government signed an MoU with the Centre in 1999, State Finance Minister Prafulla Ghadei said.“As the tenure of restriction on making appointment will be over in 2009, the State government may go for making fresh appointments,” the Finance Minister said.He said though the State’s financial situation improved to some extent, it could not go on making massive appointments as a number of welfare schemes were to be funded from the State exchequer.
The Finance Minister said of the 9,200 posts, some would be filled on regular basis while others on ad hoc basis. – PTI

Special Crime Control Act on anvil to check dreaded criminals in the State.

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar:

Criminals be aware! The Orissa Government will soon come up with a Special Crime Control Act to check top-rated criminals and criminal activities in the State.

The decision of the State Home Department assumes significance following gangsters and criminals keeping policemen on their toes in several sensational murder and extortion cases. "The Act will be drafted on the lines of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA)," highly placed Home Department sources said on Thursday. The sources said the draft of the proposed Act is being prepared.
Under the proposed Act, which is likely to be introduced in the next session of the State Assembly, confession of a criminal before the police could be considered as evidence. Besides, it would also have provisions to accept telephonic conversations between criminals as evidence, which could help in conviction, the sources said. "The law will also have provisions of awarding death," the sources informed.

Under the Act, all the witnesses could be provided security that would encourage people to come up with evidences against criminals. Now, due to lack of such a facility, no one dares to stand as witness against the criminals. "We require a stringent law to deal with the criminals as gangsters like Raja Acharya, Sheikh Hyder, Anil Chhotray, Minja, Tito and some others," a top cop told The Pioneer.
He pointed out that with huge amount of money in their hands, the criminals could now easily manage to get bail by paying handsome amounts to lawyers due to non-existence of tough laws. This apart, the present criminals are different from their predecessors because they are educated and have some knowledge of law, he added. "Unless you bring a stringent law, you cannot win them," the top cop reasoned.

Thursday, June 5, 2008

E-tendering for works to start from July 1.

In order to maintain transparency in the entire tendering process, there will be on-line e-tendering for all works of Rs 50 lakh and above in the engineering departments from July 1. A decision to this effect was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday.With its implementation, works under manual tendering process will be discontinued. National Informatics Centre (NIC) will provide the requisite software for the State wide e-tendering initiative.
Meanwhile, e-tendering has been successfully implemented in Water Resource and Works Departments. However, 20 more projects will be completed by the engineering departments in June.
A massive training programme has already been launched by the NIC and IT Departments to train all officers of engineering departments dealing with tenders.Training will also be conducted for prospective builders belonging to various categories.There will be substantial saving of time and cost with the implementation of such e-tendering project besides making the tendering process more transparent and competitive.
An e-procurement cell will also be set up in the engineering departments.Chief Secretary Ajit Triapthy, Development Commissioner RN Bohidar, Agricultural Production Commissioner Satya Prakash Nanda and many senior officers attended the meeting.

Sand artiste Sudarsan leaves for Berlin .

Noted sand artiste Sudarsan Pattnaik, after winning the people's choice prize at the Moscow international sand sculpture championship, on Wednesday left for Berlin to represent India in the USF World Double Sand Sculpture Championship 2008. The championship will kick off from Thursday and continue till June 13 in Berlin, Germany. Pattnaik and his student Jitendra Kishore Jagadev will participate as double in the championship. In this event, 11 countries, including Denmark, Germany, US, UK, Spain, Holland, Japan, Belgium, Maraco and India will participate. The artistes will create seven-meter-high sculptures. Pattnaik said he would create a sculpture-based global warming phenomenon.

LN Gupta gets Petroleum berth at Centre .

The 1986-batch IAS officer of the Orissa cadre, Laxmi Narayan Gupta, was appointed as the Joint Secretary of the Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry in New Delhi on Tuesday. Presently serving as Resident Commissioner of the State Government, he will take over his new assignment in the next week, sources said. As the Resident Commissioner, he for the first time brought out an elaborate Delhi-Bhubaneswar combined official telephone directory covering almost all dignitaries and officials of Orissa and New Delhi. Similarly, the 1980-batch IAS officer, Anita Agnihotri, has also received a Central berth as the chief of Santacruz Export Promotion Zone. She is presently the State's Principal Secretary of the Handloom and Textiles Department.

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Students protest seat reduction in Ravenshaw University.

The Hindu,Cuttack :
A students’ unrest is in the offing at Ravenshaw University as the students are regrouping during the ongoing summer vacation to protest against the arbitrary decision of the State government to reduce the number of seats in the Arts stream of both under graduate and post graduate courses of the University.

On Tuesday, some DSO students submitted a memorandum to the University registrar demanding to revoke the seat reduction notification. The students also urged the university authorities to stop the ongoing admission process till the notification is withdrawn.

“Since the university is now closed for summer vacation, we are regrouping the students and from Thursday we would launch an agitation inside the campus”, said the DSO district secretary Sibashis Praharaj.

CM-headed panel clears 11 mega projects.

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar
The High Level Clearance Authority (HLCA) of the State Government headed by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday cleared around 11 projects in steel, power and petro-chemical sectors.Briefing the media, Chief Secretary Ajit Kumar Tripathy said the State Government cleared the ship building yard and ship repairing project of Apeejay Shipping Ltd. The project would come up at Dhamra and Rs 2,200 crore would be invested in the project. The ship building yard and repairing project will be implemented through a joint venture company named as Oceanic Shipyard Ltd (OSL) formed by APJ Shipping and Bharati Shipyard.The company has indicated it would complete all phases of the project within 72 months. It has sought 1,000 acres of land. "The State Government has already accorded the administrative approval for the acquisition of the required land for this employment intensive project," Tripathy said.
The State Government will gain revenue of about Rs 3,700 crore over the next 25-30 years in the form of taxes and duties. Besides, it will generate direct and indirect employment opportunities for about 51,300 persons when fully commissioned.He further said that the Government also agreed to the Centre's proposal to set up a Petroleum, Chemicals and Petro-Chemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) at Paradip. An estimated Rs 15,275 crore is proposed to be invested in the project.The Central support for PCPIR is projected at about Rs 5,008 crore while the remaining Rs 7,517 crore will be mobilised through Public-Private-Partnership (PPP).The project will be implemented in three phases with an estimated investment Rs 2,200 crore in the first phase. The project would be completed by 2030.
Similarly, the Committee approved Welspun Power and Steel Ltd's proposal for setting up a 5 million tonne per annum iron ore beneficiation plant and 3 million tonne per annum pelletisation plant at Dhamara.
The committee also cleared the capacity expansion plan of the Essar Steel from 4 million tonne to 6 million tonne per annum along with a 8 million tonne per annum iron ore benificiation plant. The company intended to change its steel making technology from the sponge iron route to blast furnace route.
Besides, the proposal of the SMC Power Generation Ltd to expand capacity from 0.5mtpa to 1mtpa, increasing the capacity of MSP Metaliks from 0.25 mtpa to 1 mtpa, enhancement of steel making capacity of Bhusan Steel from 3.10 million tonne to 9 million tonne per annum were approved by HLCA.
The HLCA also gave its nod to the proposal of Bhusan Energy Ltd for a 2,000 MW thermal power plant at one go, 1,000 MW thermal power plant by Monnet Ispat and Energy at one go instead of two phases and 1,000 MW thermal power plant at one go.

Free Electricity to 35 lakh BPL families within one year.

The State Government has decided to give free electricity to nearly 35 lakh BPL families within one year. A decision to this effect was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by the Energy Minister Surjya Naryan Patro on Tuesday. All the officials of the distribution companies were present in the meeting.Later briefing the media, Energy Minister Patro said in the preliminary phase, electrical instruments like bulb, meter and wire within a price of Rs 2,200 would be supplied to the people living under BPL category. The programme would be initiated in 4,000 villages under the Rajiv Gandhi Rural Electrification Programme and Biju Gram Jyoti Yojana.
He further said that an electrical poll will be set up after every 30 metres. All the distribution companies would take steps to provide uninterrupted supply of power to the towns and take steps to provide high-voltage line to the rural areas.
"The low voltage problem would be solved within one-and-a-half years. The old transformers would be replaced by new transformers within one-and-a-half years", Patro said, adding that decision has been taken to purchase 3,000 new transformers.
The Power Distribution Company CESU has already changed 150 transformers. OPTCL would set up 19 new transformers. In order to solve the low voltage crisis, a review meeting would be held every month.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Road work starts on Red Corridor.

In order to curb the Maoist menace in the Red Corridor, the State Government has decided to expedite the road works in these areas. The road would connect Vijaywada to Ranchi and pass through 12 Maoist-infested districts of the State. It would pass through nearly 1,200 km in the State.Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday laid the foundation stone for the work. He laid the foundation at Nakatideula near Rairkhol. In the first phase, the road would cover 29 km.
Speaking on the occasion Patnaik said the road would bring prosperity to the local people and would enable them to mingle with the developmental process.The Chief Minister took up this issue in 2006 with the Centre on constructing of a road that would pass through the Red Corridor. The road would be helpful for the easy movement of the police forces in the areas. However, the Maoists are dead against the construction of the roads.

Road work starts on Red Corridor.

In order to curb the Maoist menace in the Red Corridor, the State Government has decided to expedite the road works in these areas. The road would connect Vijaywada to Ranchi and pass through 12 Maoist-infested districts of the State. It would pass through nearly 1,200 km in the State.Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday laid the foundation stone for the work. He laid the foundation at Nakatideula near Rairkhol. In the first phase, the road would cover 29 km.
Speaking on the occasion Patnaik said the road would bring prosperity to the local people and would enable them to mingle with the developmental process.The Chief Minister took up this issue in 2006 with the Centre on constructing of a road that would pass through the Red Corridor. The road would be helpful for the easy movement of the police forces in the areas. However, the Maoists are dead against the construction of the roads.

Mobile towers to be set up in Police stations in Maoist affected areas of Orissa.

The Centre has asked the State Government to provide land to set up mobile towers in the Maoist affected areas. "The State Government is considering the request of the Centre," said State Home Secretary TK Mishra.
It has been found that the Maoists have started targeting the mobile towers to disrupt the entire communication system. They have already destroyed a number of towers in the Maoist affected areas as police failed to provide necessary security cover to the towers. The police have also admitted that it is practically impossible to provide security cover to the mobile towers.
In order to tackle the rising Maoists threat, the Centre has decided to set up towers in the premises of police stations. "If there is land available in the premises of police stations, we will certainly allow the companies to set up their mobile tower centres," said Mishra.

Monday, June 2, 2008

Equality Forum raises voice against Caste based Reservation system.

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar
Protesting caste-based reservation on the ground that it violates the provisions of equality before law and equal protection of law as prescribed under Article 12 of the Constitution, the State wing of the All India Equality Forum on Sunday said reservation is not the only way of uplifting economically and educationally backward classes, including Scheduled Castes and Schedule Tribes. This has been proved since the Constitution came into force, it argued.
However, the Government is using reservation as a weapon to win elections violating the provisions of Article 335 of the Constitution and inducing casteism among the people, said State president of the forum, Vagirathi Mahasuar, at a news conference here.He stressed on equal treatment before law for all citizens of the country, irrespective of posts and status held by the individuals. Reservation is just an enabling provision and it can no longer be included under fundamental rights, he said.
The forum is determined to protect the right of equality to all citizens in the matter of direct recruitments and promotions in all services without any preferential treatment on the basis of caste, creed, religion, province and place of birth.It demanded abolition of special rules or Acts made in the interest of a special caste group, said Mahasuar.The State Government is violating the directions of the Supreme Court while framing special provisions of reservation, he said, adding that the forum would launch an Equality Rath Yatra soon to protest against reservation and create public participation on the issue.

Centurion Group launches NHANCE.

A new type of school in eastern India, NHANCE, has been established with the objective of providing high-end technical, functional and soft skills like communication, personality development training to its students in order to make them industry-ready professionals.The ongoing and pass-out engineering students as well as executives, who need to excel in the corporate world, can join the institute. The institute provides two types of courses related to Information Technology (IT) and Finance.All the students shall be provided soft skills training in addition to their respective courses.
CCNA Authorised Training and Testing, CAD/CAM, CATIA, AUTOCAD and SAP are the IT related courses provided by NHANCE.CCNA Authorised Training and Testing course is provided in the Jagannath Institute for Technology and Management (JITM), an authorised training partner of CISCO with CISCO certified faculty members and the only online testing center in Orissa.
Other IT related courses are provided in the best equipped CAD/CAM laboratories in the eastern region Certificate in Capital Markets and Advanced Diploma in Capital Markets are the finance-related courses offered by NHANCE in collaboration with the Bhubaneswar Stock Exchange.Certificate in Capital Markets is a three-month course for working executives where as Advanced Diploma in Capital Markets is a one year course attached with two months internship with a financial company and placement assistance.

Aptech launches N-Power in Bhubaneswar .

Aptech Limited, an IT education and training group, launched its specialised hardware and networking training centre, N-Power, here.Bhubaneswar centre was the 36th centre of N-Power in India, Aptech said in a release.The N-Power courses would have recognition of international vendors like CompTIA, Microsoft and RedHat, it said.
“There is a massive requirement of hardware and networking professionals in the banking and financial services, manufacturing, small and medium enterprises and retail. We are sure this state-of-the-art N-Power training centre will address the training requirements of aspiring hardware and networking professionals,” said Rajendra Singh, zonal head of Aptech’s northern and eastern region.Keeping various groups of student community and job requirements in view, N-Power has launched a series of programs divided into basic, foundation, career and professional tracks ranging from 1.5 month to 11 months.

State mulls Irish PDS to reduce fake beneficiaries.

To streamline the Public Distribution System (PDS) and curb the pilferage of commodities, the State Government is mulling a plan to reduce the number of beneficiaries of PDS on the lines of Ireland.This was revealed by some officials of the Food and Civil Supplies Department, who were here to inquire into the circulation of ghost rations cards in Kendrapara district. To make the system perfect and to curb the circulation of 'ghost' beneficiaries, the ration cards for both APL and BPL category of beneficiaries are being refurbished similar to the popular model introduced in Ireland. Some of these cards have been issued on a trial basis in some parts of the backward Rayagada district under the World Food Programme.
If found suitable, the cards would be introduced in other parts of the State, informed the officials.
The new ration cards would have several new features that would stop the menace of unscrupulous practice of bogus cards and ghost beneficiaries. The model card would have all the details of the enlisted beneficiary, his dependant family members and other details.To stop manipulation of facts and misleading data, the model card would have eyelashes and fingerprints affixed and attached on it. Unlike the cards on circulation now, there would be no photograph of beneficiaries. The eyelashes and fingerprints are free from tampering, sources said.

State mulls Irish PDS to reduce fake beneficiaries.

To streamline the Public Distribution System (PDS) and curb the pilferage of commodities, the State Government is mulling a plan to reduce the number of beneficiaries of PDS on the lines of Ireland.This was revealed by some officials of the Food and Civil Supplies Department, who were here to inquire into the circulation of ghost rations cards in Kendrapara district. To make the system perfect and to curb the circulation of 'ghost' beneficiaries, the ration cards for both APL and BPL category of beneficiaries are being refurbished similar to the popular model introduced in Ireland. Some of these cards have been issued on a trial basis in some parts of the backward Rayagada district under the World Food Programme.
If found suitable, the cards would be introduced in other parts of the State, informed the officials.
The new ration cards would have several new features that would stop the menace of unscrupulous practice of bogus cards and ghost beneficiaries. The model card would have all the details of the enlisted beneficiary, his dependant family members and other details.To stop manipulation of facts and misleading data, the model card would have eyelashes and fingerprints affixed and attached on it. Unlike the cards on circulation now, there would be no photograph of beneficiaries. The eyelashes and fingerprints are free from tampering, sources said.

Sunday, June 1, 2008

Talcher country's most polluted place: CPCB.

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar
The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has termed the industrial region of Talcher as the most polluted place in the country.The CPCB has identified 24 problem areas on the basis of air and water pollution by industries. The board will prepare Environment Management Plans (EMPs) for these regions soon.Talcher in the Angul district in Orissa is known for its vast coal reserves and also houses major NTPC plants. The district is also home to the Nalco, one of the profit-making public sector units.
Following Talcher, Ankleshwar in Gujarat, Bhadravati in Karnataka, Bollaram in Karnataka, Chembur in Maharashtra and Dhanbad in Bihar are among the worst polluted places in India, the Board's report said. The board said it has been conducting inspections to ensure compliance by industrial units of various pollution control norms.The CPCB has identified 17 categories of polluting industries located along the rivers and lakes and in problem areas

Oriya Sand Artist Sudarshan Patnaik's Global Warming Sculpture wins Russian prize.

Noted sand artiste Sudarshan Patnaik on Saturday won the People's Choice prize at the 1st Moscow International Sand Sculpture Championship held in the Russian capital. The artistes from Italy won the 'Jury Choice' prize, Ireland the 'Sculptor Choice' in the championship.Pattnaik had created a 15-feet-high Lord Ganesh to create awareness among the people on the potential dangers of global warming at the International Sand Championship.The top of the sculpture depicted the melting of glaciers in the Himalayas and in the flowing water on which Lord Ganesh is travelling on a boat with a sign 'Divine Concern on Global Warming'.

Saturday, May 31, 2008

Pragyan Ojha : fourth Odia in Indian Cricket Team.

Good news for Orissa cricket lovers. After a gap of nearly five years, yet another Orissa cricketer has found a berth in Indian cricket team when Pragyan Ojha was picked up by the national selectors for the upcoming Triangular series in Bangladesh as well as the subsequent Asia Cup to be played in Pakistan.

The 22-year-old left arm off spinner who plays for the Hyderabad and represented the Deccan Chargers in the ongoing IPL, is actually the fourth Oriya to be selected for the national team.Sanjay Roul, Debashis Mohanty and S S Das of the state have earlier done duty for the Team India.Born in Khurda district in 1986, Ojha started his cricketing career from Sahid Sporting club in Bhubaneswar along with Mohanty. He played in the Under-15 inter-state cricket tournament organized by the Orissa Cricket Association. He went to Hyderabad in the year 2000 for his studies and from since then is a regular player of the Hyderabad Ranji team.

Under-19

Ojha had also represented India U-19 and played against Zimbabwe and Kenya. His inclusion in the India team is to fill in the off-spinner’s slot in the absence of banned Harbhajan Singh.Cricket lovers in the State have welcomed the inclusion of Ojha in the India team. “Although, he plays for Hyderabad but we are definitely happy that an Oriya has booked a berth in India team.

We congratulate him and wish him good luck”, said the OCA secretary Ashirbad Behera. OCA president Ranjib Biswal, a member of the national selection committee too is elated over the news. “It’s definitely a good news for every Oriya cricket lover”, Biswal said.

Greenpeace 'twisting facts' on Dhamra port !

Pioneer News Service | Bhubaneswar:
A major port at Dhamra in Orissa's Bhadrak district was initiated in 1996, though the earlier old Dhamra port was operating till 1947. The current port limits of the Dhamra port were defined way back in 1931. Greenpeace, India is deliberately trying to spread a maligned misinformation campaign against the upcoming modern Dhamra port with ulterior motives, which can be seen from its several motives, according to the port management sources.
Although the work of the major port at Dhamra was initiated in 1996, Greenpeace never raised its objections till 2001. It also did not file its objections during the environment clearance nor did it move the National Appellate Authority.
As per the various studies of the Central and Orissa Governments, the State has three nesting and mating places along its coast, Gahirmatha, mouth of river Devi and mouth of river Rusikulya. As per studies of the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) in 1994, the Orissa coast, which is north of Dhamra river, is shallow and muddy in nature and unfit for turtle mating and nesting. Why is Greenpeace then trying to prove that Dhamra port is going to harm the Olive Ridley turtles in spite of the Government of India's report, which is as old as 14 years, much before Dhamra major port was conceived, ask knowledgeable quarters.
As per WWF, an UN-based organisation, banning of movement of ships and trawlers needs to done during the turtle breeding and mating period of 45 days on a 20-km radius of turtle breeding grounds. The facts of the ports in Orissa with regard to the turtle breeding grounds are as follows: The Paradip port is located about 30 km (sea coast distance) from the Gahirmatha breeding ground. But it may be noted that the turtles travel from south to north, so they pass through the activity area of the Paradip Port to reach Gahirmatha. There are no visible obstacles between the Gahirmatha breeding ground and Paradip Port. Further, the Debi river mouth's turtle breeding place is also located 30 km south of Paradip.
The upcoming Dhamra port is also located 30 km from Gahirmatha. But there are three major obstacles between the two locations. They are Mahipura river, Kanika Sands and Dhamra river in order of south to north. The Dhamra port site is north of Dhamra river. Further, the DRDO is also located between the two locations. Due to these obstacles the turtles do not cross the Mahipura river as per the observation during the last 20 years. There is no mating and breeding area of turtles north to Dhamra. It is absolutely clear that the location of Dhamra port is the safest location vis-à-vis turtle travelling, mating and nesting ground. Greenpeace is twisting the facts against the Dhamra port, rued the sources.

Centre to provide funds to increase Cereal and Edible Oil production in Orissa.

The Centre has reportedly agreed to provide huge funds for the development of agriculture in the State in the current financial year.The funds would be utilised for enhancing the production of cereals and edible oil seeds. This was stated by the Secretary, Union Ministry of Agriculture PK Mishra after he called on Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the State Secretariat on Friday.Briefing the media about the assurance made by Mishra, Secretary, Agriculture UP Singh said the Centre has put stress on enhancing the production of oil seeds and pulses in the State.
Though the country has been self-reliant in the production of paddy, it has not yet been able to be self-sufficient in the production of cereals and edible oil. The country aims to produce 227 million tonne of paddy in the current year. "Similarly, the paddy production in Orissa has increased over the years," he said, adding that the country imports 40 per cent of its required cereals and two million tonne of edible oil.
Under the Rastriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, the Centre would provide Rs 115 crore and Rs 61 crore under National Food Security Mission (NFSM) programme.He further said the Centre has given a proposal to introduce Weather based Crop insurance programme. Under the National Horticulture Programme, the Centre has also reportedly agreed to give Rs 95 crore, Singh said.