TNI Bureau: Leader of the Opposition in Odisha Assembly, Naveen Patnaik, on Monday criticized the BJP Government for repeating more than 80% of the schemes implemented by BJD Government in the 2024-25 annual budget.
Patnaik argued that the BJP had promised a ‘game-changing budget’ but failed to deliver. It presented a ‘name changing’ Budget instead. This Government has changed the names of 45 schemes.
LoP Naveen Patnaik’s speech during Budget discussion:
📌BJP manifesto promised 50,000 to each woman of Odisha under SUBHADRA scheme. More than 2 crore women are there in Odisha. Further, this was promised to be given in two years. You will need One lakh crore to fulfill this promise. You have kept only Rs 10,000 crore in this budget. This will cover less than 10% women of Odisha. What about the rest 1 crore 80 lakh women?
📌BJP promised to increase pension to Rs 3,500 per month. There are about fifty lakh pensioners in the State, out of which hardly one lakh pensioners will benefit as per the budget allocation.
📌Senior citizens over 80 years of age and persons with 80% or more disability will get the enhanced pension amount. What will happen to the rest 49 lakh pensioners between 60 to 80 years of age including widows, PWDs and distressed people? You need about Rs 21000 crores per year to fulfill this promise.
📌BJP promised 3100 per quintal MSP for farmers. The allocation kept in the budget will not be adequate to cover even 30% farmers. How do you plan to cover the remaining lakhs of farmers of Odisha?
📌BJP promised 300 units of free electricity in campaign speeches. The Central Government has planned free electricity for 1 crore houses for the whole country. Odisha’s share may be three lakh houses. We have one and half crore houses in the state. Is this the free electricity you promised to the people?
📌In the next 5 years BJP won’t be able to cover even 5% of Odisha’s population under 300 units of free BIJILI”. The way you projected the scheme in social media – people have been waiting for zero electricity bill from July. I am sorry, You have cheated the people of Odisha.
📌Odisha unit of BJP has promised 25 lakh LAKHPATI DIDIS by the year 2027 – in 3 years. You will need about 20,000 crores to implement this. You have allocated only One thousand crores for this. Let me on record demand that the list of “LAKHPATI DIDIS” be subsequently placed in this August house with all details.
📌BJP Odisha promised a developed Odisha by the year 2036. The budget document provides twenty crores for industrial corridor connecting Rourkela Sambalpur Paradip and Dhamra by June 2027. A corridor like this will not cost less than one lakh crores. Your party is known for “JUMLA”, but this is a cruel JOKE on the people of Odisha to whom you gave the dream of a developed Odisha.