Rs 2. 5 crore looted from Bank of Borada in Orissa

By R. Simi

Bhubaneswar, March 23: Masked miscreants, suspected to be members of the banned Maoist group, on Friday looted more than Rs 2.5 crore from the strongroom of a nationalised bank at Barbil, nearly 350 km from here.

According to police, at around 10.10 am, a nine-member gang of rubbers – armed with pistols and sharp weapons - barged into the Barbil branch of Bank of Borada and asked the bank officials to hand over the keys of the strong room. They also asked the customers present not to move from their positions and raise an alarm.

The officer-in-charge of Barbil police station S.K. Nayak, who rushed to the spot immediately after the incident, said the bank manager had claimed over Rs 2.5 crore was looted by the gang but the actual amount was yet to be ascertained.
"All of the gang members were holding pistols and threatened to open fire if we tried to raise alarm," a bank customer said.

After the panicked officials handed over the keys, the docoits rushed towards the strongroom and took away the cash in three bags, an eye witness said.
The police, quoting the bank officials, said the looters were heard talking to each other in Hindi. They fled the place within 30 minutes.

"We have sealed all the entry and exit points of Keonjhar district with neighboouring state of Jharkhand. Police teams have been formed to trace out the culprits," said inspector Mr Nayak.
The Keonjhar police superintendent G.S. Upadhaya has informed the police in adjacent Jharkhand, from where the gang was suspected to have come.

Orissa economy back on track after 22 years

By Akshaya Kumar Sahoo

Bhubaneswar, March 23: After a gap of 22 years, Orissa has been able to achieve a revenue surplus of Rs. 418.19 crore in 2005-06. Thanks to the prudent fiscal management and expenditure rationalization efforts of the Navin Patnaik government.

The state's own tax GSDP ratio, as governor Rameshwar Thakur mentioned in his address in the Assembly on Wednesday, has increased from 4.7 per cent in 1999-2000 to 7.9 per cent in 2005-06.

Similarly the state's total own revenue as percentage of GSDP has increased from 6.3 per cent in 1999-2000 to 10.3 per cent in 2005-06, enabling the state to achieve a revenue surplus of Rs. 418.19 crore.

The cash-starved Orissa government has accorded high priority to fiscal management and structural reforms in the past few years to bail out the state from its dependence on external borrowings and loans. Besides, it has also been focusing on rapid industrialisation with value addition to its rich mineral resources.

Since 2000, Orissa, – which is endowed with huge iron ore reserves - has been striving hard to facilitate setting up of integrated steel plants in the state.
At least 45 steel companies, including the reputed players like POSCO, Arcellor- Mittal, Tata, Sterlite, Essar, Jindals and Bhusands have signed memoranda of understanding with the state government for setting up steel plants with total investment of about Rs 1.95, 540 crore for production of 74.65 million tones of steel per annum.

Not only mega industries, small and medium enterprises are also being encouraged by the state government to participate in the employment generation economic growth of the state.

"Due attention is being given to the revival and promotion of the SSI and medium scale industries. They are being provided incentives like interest subsidy, reimbursement of sales tax and capital investment subsidy to improve the their competitiveness," said the governor Mr Thakur.

Orissa government and Information Commission wrangle over judicial probe report

By Binita Jaiswal

Bhubaneswar, March 17: Is probe report of a judicial commission confidential? Can a government agency deny the report to citizens who have asked for it under the provisions of the Right to Information Act?

The Orissa government and State Information Commission (SIC) continue to wrangle over these questions. While the SIC holds that the document is not confidential and it can be given to common citizens on demand, the state home department is reluctant to part with it maintaining that the report is confidential.

The home department has refused to obey the order of the SIC direction to provide the document to an applicant. The applicant Biswapriya Kanungo has been running from pillar to post to get the report.

The entire issue has put the letter and spirit of the RTI, talk of transparency and accountability and other related matters, including orders of the Information Commission, to test.

The case relates to the applicant Mr Kanungo's petition for a copy of the Justice P.K Tripathy commission report on Sorono police firing of 1999. Four fishermen were killed in the police firing. The Commission directed the home department to supply a copy of the report to the applicant. However, the home department did not comply the order and submitted that it would move the high court in appeal against the order.
Mr Kanungo filed a caveat in court.

During the hearing on Thursday, Mr Kanungo said neither he nor the SIC had received any orders from the court staying operation of the Commission's order to furnish the Tripathy Commission report. Hence, the order to give the report stands and he was entitled to it.
Apart from his submissions, the applicant filed a petition seeking a token compensation of one rupee from the government for disobeying the order of the State Information Commission and for violation of the spirit of the Act. The Commission heard his plea and has asked the officer concerned of the home department to appear in person on April 5.

(Binita Jaiswal is a young and talented journalist. She is doing her masters in journalism at Utkal University and at present working with the multi-lingual national news agency Hindusthan Samachar.)

Road blockade costs Orissa economy Rs 4,000 crore

By Akshaya Kumar Sahoo

Bhubaneswar, March 15: The 431-day blockade of National Highway 200 at Kalinga Nagar in Orissa's Jajpur district has put the state economy under severe pressure.

The state economy, as per a rough estimate, has suffered a loss of more than Rs 4000 crores, apart from the loss of employment opportunities that could have been generated for thousands of local tribals.

Frequent violence at Kalinga Nagar, the steel hub of the country, have forced two leading steel companies to shift their projects from the region. Maharashtra Seamless Limited was first to go after it faced the wrath of tribals in September, 2005 during its ground breaking ceremony. Uttam Galva Limited did not enter the area as the tribals were blockading the road.

The cumulative loss of investment due to shifting of these two companies has been valued at Rs 3,800 crores. Now also it is not sure whether other companies who have signed memoranda of understanding with the state government will come up with their projects or not.

Apart from that the transportation of the iron and chrome ore was hampered due to the blockade. The NH-200 transports three million tonnes of chrome ore and concentrate and five million tonnes of iron ore annually.

With the NH-200 blocked by the tribals at Kalinga Nagar, the turcks were forced to pass through much crowded Jajpur road municipal area to reach their destinations. This created massive chaos inside Jajpur road leading to severe accidents and loss of precious lives including school going children.

This led to strong protests by the people of Jajpur road, which also resulted couple of Jajpur road bandhs. Due to pressure from both sides ( from NH-200 side and Jajpur road) transportation of mineral became a huge problem, which ultimately resulted in loss in productions in the surrounding iron ore and chrome ore mines in Daitary and Sukinda valley.

This reduction in production resulted in loss of employment for the local tribals working in these mines. Further, the trucks passing through Jajpur road had to cover an additional 40 km to reach their destination, which resulted in additional expenses of Rs 50 per tonne. Thus, the total economy loss due to circuitous transportation for the fourteen months works out to around Rs 50 crores.

Estimate reveals that the blockade resulted in a loss of 20 lakh man-days of employment for the local tribals and deprived them a better quality of life. It may be mentioned here that the tribals had been blockading the NH 200 in protest against the killing of 13 of their fellow people in police firing on January 2,2006. The unpleasant firing incident took place when the tribals clashed with the police opposing boundary wall construction of steel project.

Cooperative wins here as private effort fails

Ratikant Mohanty

Bhubaneswar, March 13: In an era of disinvestment and privatisation, a loss-making sugar industry which was established by a private firm in 1994, has recently seen a turnaround in its fate, especially after it was bought and run by a cooperative society.

Bijayajanda Cooperative Sugar Mills of Deogaon in western Orissa's Bolangir district, has made a profit of Rs 22 lakh this year. The plant had also made a profit of Rs 20 lakh last year.
Chennai-based Ponni Sugar and Chemicals Limited had established the sugar plant with a project cost of Rs 64 crore in 1994. The plant could not operate successfully and it ran into rough weather as adequate sugarcane was not available for crushing.

By 2001, the plant had incurred a whopping loss of Rs 54 crore and finally went to the jurisdiction of ICCI Bank, the main financier.

After lying idle for four years, Bijayanada Cooperative Society took over the plant from the ICCI Bank on Februayr 1, 2005. Under the able leadership of Jangeswar Babu, a noted cooperative moment leader of Orissa, the sugar mills reached its new heights last year when it recorded cane crushing to the tune of 30,500 tonnes. This year the cane crushing has touched 57,000 tonnes, said secretary of Bijayanananda Cooperative Society Biswanth Babu.

As against annual sugar requirement of 4.5 metric tonnes, production of the commodity in Orissa is just 15 per cent of the demand. The balance quantity is imported from other states.
Industrialists feel the state has much potential for the growth of sugar industries.

"If concerted efforts are made by both the prospective entrepreneurs and the state government, as many as 20 more sugar industries could be established," said Trailokya Mishra, chairman of Nayagarh Sugar Complex.

State industry minister Biswa Bhusan Harichandan said since sugarcane cultivation fetched good return, the government was committed provide incentives as per the state industrial policy to the existing operational sugar industries. The government is also equally serious to encourage setting up of new sugar industries through Industries Facilitation Act and Single Window System.

Director of state industries department Hemant Sharma told this paper that the government was focusing on development of agriculture based industries.

"The state government is giving stress on agro-based industries. Efforts are being made to create cluster industries to agro and food processing industrial units," Mr Sharma said, adding prospective entrepreneurs would be encouraged to establish such ventures.

(Ratikant Mohanty is a senior journalist having experience of over 25 years. Straight and upright, Mr Mohanty is known for his righteousness and good understanding of subjects)

Orissa government to provide sanitary napkins to women prisoners

By Prasanna Mohanty

Bhubaneswar, March 13: Moving one more step forward to provide better living conditions to women prisoners in the state, Orissa government has started distributing sanitary napkins to them.

This move is being hailed in social circles as yet another step forward to provide better living conditions to women prisoners in the state.

"The state government has decided to provide one packet of sanitary napkins to each of the woman jail inmates every month so that they can meet their sanitary requirements," said state home secretary Tarunkanti Mishra said on Tuesday.

The state government's new humanitarian step follows reports from jail authorities that women prisoners were exposed to infection as they were compelled to use old clothes.
The move is not going to cost much to the state exchequer.

"The decision to supply sanitary napkins is not going to cost much to the coffer – only an additional Rs 1.38 lakh a month is required and the government has agreed to provide it. This amount is nothing considering the human dignity and value involved in it," Mr Mishra added.
Of the around 15,000 convicts and under-trial prisoners housed in 70 jails in the state, 492 are women. This includes 86 convicts.

At present, the government provides a bathing soap and a bottle of coconut oil to each woman prisoner every month. Besides, two pairs of clothes (saree, blouse and petticoat) are given to them annually.

The state government has been vigorously pursuing jail reform programmes since 2000. Jail inmates, both male and female, are taken to their respective places of worship on religious occasions. Children living with their parents in jail are getting education free of cost in government schools or educational institutes run by non-governmental organisations.
Welcoming the decision, human rights activist Swati Sucharita Patnaik said women jail inmates can now feel a little privileged.

"Indian women are very shy – they do not share many things, including some their natural biological occurrences, with male folks and suffer from consequent problems. When it comes to menstruation, most of the women do not divulge it to anybody other than their husbands. Although women behind the bars suffered from menstruation period problem, they did not dare to speak it out," said Ms Patnaik.

(Prasanna Mohanty is an eminent freelance journalist. He has proved his worth as the news editor of Oriya daily Pragativadi. Known for his eloquent political writing and catchy headlines, Mr Mohanty is one of the promising young journalists of the state)