Former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday called the Union Budget 2024 a “disappointment” over BJP’s unfulfilled promise to grant a special category status to Odisha.
Patnaik, whose party was recently ousted by the BJP in the Assembly elections, has alleged that BJP failed to fulfil its promise of granting special status to Odisha, despite mentioning it in their manifesto before the 2024 state assembly elections.
The former CM has launched a scathing critique against the BJP-led NDA government, accusing it of gross negligence and partiality towards Odisha in favour of Andhra Pradesh and Bihar.
In a post on X, Naveen Patnaik said, “BJP had put special category status in their manifesto as a promise to the people of Odisha, however, this promise has not been considered for Odisha, whereas special packages, allocating crores of funds have been announced for Andhra Pradesh and Bihar in Budget 2024. Along with this, the demand of Odisha for revision of coal royalty, which has been pending for years with the central government has been rejected, because of which the state will lose thousands of crores of revenue every year.”
The Union Budget, according to Patnaik, also failed to address the promises made to various sectors within Odisha during the election campaign. He alleged that there was no mention of any significant investments or initiatives in agriculture, MSME, and industry sectors. “Lots of big promises in different sectors were made to the people of Odisha during their election campaign related to the agriculture sector and MSPs. There is no mention of any promise being fulfilled in this Budget. This is a complete neglect of Odisha and her people,” he said.
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Odisha, a state frequently battered by natural disasters such as floods and cyclones, had requested a special package for disaster management. While similar demands from other states have been promptly addressed, Naveen Patnaik claimed.
Reflecting on the decade-long tenure of the NDA government, Patnaik alleged that despite repeated assurances of focusing on Eastern India, including Odisha, there has been little to show in terms of substantial benefits for the state.
“I’m happy to see there is a focus on Tourism for Odisha. I hope it is substantial, and we shall wait for the details to come out. I would say that, along with the people of Odisha, I feel disappointed at the continued neglect of Odisha while the state contributes so much to the country. Leaders of the BJP had given many tall promises during the poll. But there is nothing for Odisha and for its people,” he added.
The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MPs staged a walkout during the budget presentation yesterday, protesting the denial of special status to Odisha.