Despite campaigns, Orissa fails to attract Tourists

Express News Service
27 Sep 2009

Bhubaneswar :

The landscape of Orissa is abound with natural beauty both flora and fauna, towering temples, rich cultural heritage but the State is yet to exploit its strength in terms of generating tourist inflow or revenue. Despite high decibel promo-campaigns, “Incredible Orissa” is still waiting to happen.

As per the latest data released by Union Ministry of Tourism, the State does not figure in the country’s top-10 states. In 2008, of a total of 568 million tourists visiting India, only 6.246 million tourists have chosen destination Orissa. Orissa had a measly share of around 1 percent in the aggregate tourist arrivals to India in 2008. It had a share of 0.92 per cent of the aggregate tourist arrivals in 2003 and has even failed to double the figure in five years.
The road ahead looks bumpy for Orissa as it dreams to receive its 10 millionth tourist by 2012. To achieve the target, the State needs a year-on-year growth rate of over 15 percent. But in 2007 the annual growth rate had been only around 9.5 per cent and in 2008 slid to around 8.5 per cent.

In case of foreign tourist arrivals too, the rate of growth slipped to 12.5 per cent from 14 per cent in 2007. So, to clock a double-digit growth rate the State needs some `incredible’ effort.
Pilgrimage tourists to Orissa account for a very nominal share of 1.7 per cent of its total arrivals. The Planning Commission has attributed the factors like lack of proper infrastructure, tourist circuit strategy and adequate public investment behind such stunted growth.

This assertion stands vindicated when it is noticed that as of March 31, 2008, as high as 26 projects in the tourism sector have been kept pending for lack of timely capital inflow. The United Nation’s World Tourism Organisation has emphasised on the need of a professional, well-funded travel and tourism research and information organisation that could draw strategies and contingencies taking into account emerging trends.

The inference is the State has to get a right mix of investment and proactive strategies to grab a significant share in the national tourism market.

Lack of teachers bane of Primary Education in Orissa

Express News Service
27 Sep 2009

Bhubaneswar : While the objective of the universalisation of primary education is to provide access to education to all children by 2010, the State has miles to go before achieving the target.

As per the Government estimate, total enrolment of children at primary level was 67.15 lakh in 2008-09. There are 43,109 primary schools (class-I to V) and about 14,000 upper primary schools (class IV to VII & class V to VII).
If a single teacher is appointed for each class at the elementary level, the minimum requirement of teachers is 2,15,545. On the same standard, about 40,000 teachers will be required for the upper primary schools.

While the total requirement of teachers for the primary schools is about 2.55 lakh, the sanctioned strength till last year was 1,66,378. Teachers numbering 35,890 took retirement during the last 10 years when there was a freeze on recruitment. Another 2,000 teachers might have retired by this time this year. On an average three per cent Government employees retire every year.
Though the Government opened 2,550 new schools in the primary and upper primary level last year, no new teacher post has been created. The minimum requirement of teachers for the new schools will be over 15,500.
Shikshyak Mahasangha general secretary Abani Boral said 12,918 schools were functioning under the District Primary Education Programme without creation of new teacher posts.

Though the Government claims to have posted more than 50,000 shikshya sahayaks, in reality there are only 37,043 such contractual teachers. As per the national yardstick, the student-teacher ratio should be ideally 40:1. On the same yardstick, the State is having a shortage of 76,000 teachers. From this one can well imagine the quality of education being imparted at the primary school level, Boral remarked.
After inclusion of Class-VIII under Sarva Shikshya Abhijan, posting of additional teachers is required for subjects like Sanskrit, Hindi and Science. The Government is yet to take initiative to provide specialised teachers for these subjects, he said.

Orissa demanded Tribal University in Kandhamal

PRESS RELEASE (CHIEF MINISTER MEETS UNION MINISTER FOR TRIBAL AFFAIRS) DT.24.09.2009
GOVERNMENT OF ORISSA

PRESS RELEASE

New Delhi
September 24, 2009
Chief Minister meets Union Minister for Tribal Affairs

Shri Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister, Orissa met Shri Kanti Lal Bhuria, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs at New Delhi today and discussed about issues relating to tribal welfare in Orissa. He asked for an early release of Central assistance for undertaking various tribal welfare activities for which a proposal was submitted by Govt. of Orissa and the Union Minister acceded to the request of the Chief Minister for grant of Rs 64.26 crore.

The Chief Minister highlighted the action being taken by the State Govt. for issue of land rights (pattas) to tribal community in Orissa and informed that it will be concluded in a time bound manner.The Chief Minister further emphasized for inclusion of more eligible communities from Orissa in the SC/ST List so that the deserving people could benefit from government programmes. He informed that 167 such proposals have been sent by the State to the Centre for inclusion in the list.

The Chief Minister also asked for release of Rs.140 crores during 2009-2010 for construction of 400 new 100 bedded ST Girls Hostels in the State. The Chief Minister requested that a Tribal University be set up in the Kandhamal district in Orissa. The Chief Minister requested for grant of Rs 5 crores for modernisation of the existing small Tribal Museum at Bhubaneswar and separate fund for opening of Tribal Museums in all the 17 Micro Project Areas in the State. He highlighted the need for increase in the amount of Post Matric Scholarship for ST/SC Students.

Recalling his recent letter written to the Union Minister, the Chief Minister asked for sanction of more Ekalabya Model Residential Schools (EMRS) in the 4 uncovered KBK districts i.e., Nuapada, Malkangiri, Sonepur & Bolangir in the current academic session.The Chief Minister informed that the DFID assisted Orissa Tribal Empowerment & Livelihoods Project has been well accepted by the Tribal Communities in the State and requested the Union Tribal Affairs Minister for augmentation of the DFID assistance to the tune of US $ 40 Million.

The Union Minister assured full cooperation of the Government of India for tribal development in Orissa.

New Vice-Chancellor of Veer Surendra Sai University of Technology, Burla.

The Hindu,10th Sept 09,BBSR:

Governor and Chancellor of universities Murlidhar Chandrakant Bhandare has appointed Deba Kumar Tripathy as the new Vice-Chancellor of Veer Surendra Sai University of Technology, Burla.

Dr. Tripathy is at present serving as professor of Rubber Technology Department in the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur.

More PG seats in VSS Medical College,Burla sought

Express News Service: 10 Sep 2009
SAMBALPUR:

After the Medical Council of India rolled back its decision to reduce 43 MBBS seats in VSS Medical College, demands are being made to reinstate the abolished post graduate seats in various departments for better medical services.

Reduction of seats coupled with vacancies and absenteeism have badly affected medical services. Locals said if the PG seats are reinstated, more doctors will be available in times of emergency.

There were four post graduation seats in Anesthesia Department which manages and operates the four-bedded ICU at VSS Medical College but two have been withdrawn reflecting on the services at the ICU.

Demand is also being made to reinstate the two post graduate seats each in Department of Skin and VD and Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology which has been withdrawn since 2006.
Likewise, to ensure steady flow of quality teachers there is a need to hike the existing PG seats in the departments of Pharmacology, Biochemistry, Physiology, Pathology, Social Preventive Medicine and Microbiology.

Moreover, VSS Medical has four super specialty departments comprising Cardiology, Urology and Nephrology besides Haematology which are non-functional in absence of doctors.

While doctors and authorities concerned refused to speak over the issue, president of Junior Doctors Association, S K Sabat agreed that reduction of post graduation seats has been reflecting on medical services.
“The State Government should initiate steps not only to reinstate the withdrawn post graduate seats but also increase it for long term gain,” he added.

World Bank aided road projects in Orissa jinxed?

Express News Service
09 Sep 2009,BBSR:

Three World Bank-assisted infrastructure projects worth over Rs 400 crore have remained a non-starter even after a year of awarding of contracts due to lack of cooperation from the Government.The World Bank sanctioned loan for widening and strengthening of three roads under the Orissa State Road Project. Tenders were invited for the three projects in January 2008.

While contract for the 41-km stretch of road from Berhampur to Taptapani was awarded in May last year, the other two packages - 95-km long Chandabali-Bhadrak-Anandapur and 68-km Bhawanipatna-Khariar road were awarded in September 2008.As per the agreement, the Berhampur-Taptapani project with an estimated cost of Rs 81.97 crore was scheduled to start on November 22, 2008 and the date of completion was November 24, 2010. The work progress is nil.

Similar is the fate of the other two projects. The contract of the Chandabali-Bhadrak-Anandapur road project with an agreement value of Rs 216.23 crore was awarded in September last year and the project was scheduled to start in February. The expenditure on the project so far is Rs 2.8 crore.

Although the scheduled date of commencement of the Bhawanipatna-Khariar road was February 20, work on the project is yet to start. Contract of the Rs 105.51-crore project was awarded in September last year.

This came to the notice of the World Bank team on Orissa State Road Project (OSRP) during a review of the infrastructure projects here today.Country head of SNEC (India) Pvt Ltd, the consultancy firm for the road projects, Ian Alderson reportedly told the meeting that his firm is not getting desired support from the chief engineer of the World Bank project. While complaining of unwanted interference from the government officers connected with the project, he said frequent transfer of engineers had severely hampered the progress.The World Bank team headed by Rajesh Rohatgi will visit the three project sites for an on-the-spot assessment. The team is scheduled to visit Bhawanipatna tomorrow.