Indian Roads Congress-2015 begins in Bhubaneswar

Smart card system in NH tollgates in State soon

--Govt to emphasise on building of cement roads

BHUBANESWAR: Now the commuters of the State need not to stop their vehicles near the National Highway (NH) toll gates to tender tax by leaving other vehicles in a beeline on the road. Introduction of new smart card system at the automated toll gates would solve the problem, said the officials at the Indian Roads Congress’s (IRC) platinum jubilee celebration here on Sunday.

IRC president Sunil Bhowmik said they would introduce smart card system for the vehicles to pay their toll tax in a smart way. In the first phase, the facilities would be installed in the Rourkela-Sambalpur road in Odisha, he added. 

IRC’s State Steering Committee Chairman and Works Department Secretary Nalini Kanta Pradhan said they would upgrade the existing software at the toll gates and introduce a new method through which sensors would automatically capture a vehicle’s license plate and debit the toll from the vehicle owner’s smart card account.

“There is no need to pay cash and wait for receipt from the employees of the toll gate which is time consuming. The censors fixed at the tollgate would do all these works smartly,” Pradhan said and added that it would facilitate smooth traffic flow on the roads. 

Pradhan said the new system would be used in the Rourkela-Sambalpur road corridor by the end of the year. 

Director General of Roads SN Das briefing the media persons said the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways would construct cement concrete roads to increase life span of the road to over 30 years. “Life span of bituminous road is 15 years and needs attention for repair within four to five years, but the cement concrete roads last longer and don’t seek attention for its repair within 10-15 years,” said Das, adding, “So the Ministry would focus on concrete cement roads in the country.” 

About the IRC’s objective, IRC Secretary General SS Nahar said the five-day long conference would discuss mainly on five things, road safety and minimising of accidental hazards, construction and maintenance of roads and bridges in a modern way, safety of environment and to promote the use of standard specifications and to propose specifications.    

Around 4000 participants of civil infrastructure professionals, members of IRC and renowned highway and bridge engineering experts from the State and the Central Government, public and private sector organisations across India and abroad would attend the five-day long technical and commercial sessions in the congress, said the IRC president.   

Unicef's National conclave ‘Nourishing India’s Tribal Children’ begins in Odisha

‘Nutrition of tribal children in State need to be improved’

BHUBANESWAR: Tribal children of nine scheduled V States including Odisha need to be given proper nutrition for their growth and development, opined experts attending a two-day long national-level conclave ‘Nourishing India’s Tribal Children' organised by the Union Tribal Affairs Ministry, the Government of Odisha and the Unicef here on Thursday. 

Inaugurating the conclave SC and ST Development Minister Lal Bihari Himirika said that there are 62 different tribes and 13 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) live in 13 out of 30 districts in Odisha. Progress of the State would remain incomplete without taking the needs and aspirations of the tribal population into account, he added.

“Improvement in nutritional outcomes requires not just the provision of food but also access to other interventions like health outreach and referral services in tribal areas, clean drinking water, open defecation free environment, reducing the incidence of poverty and ensuring livelihoods,” said Himirika and added that all the departments of the State with the help of the Centre should work unitedly to address this problem.

Unicef India representative Louis-Georges Arsenault said that percentage of tribal children who are stunted remains stubbornly high at above 50 per cent by 2013. “It is evident that this grim situation is a reflection of multiple deprivations that the tribal population has continued to face over the years,” he added.

He said a multi-sector approach is required to address the malnutrition problem with particular focus on population groups that face multiple deprivations, such as the tribals. This means including nutrition promotion in livelihood and food security programmes or in social protection schemes, he added.

Joint Secretary (Policy), Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Dr Manoj Jhalan said that when a child has become malnourished, his physical, digestive, resistance capacity to fight the disease is reduced. He becomes an easy prey to all kinds of problems related to health, he added.

Kendrapada MP Baijayant Panda said the Centre should come up with a campaign like Swachh Bharat Abhiyan to stop malnourishment and stunting in children living in the country. “If we can’t stop malnutrition and stunting of children in the country, we cannot become a strong and global super power in the world,” said Panda.

Among others, Minister of State (Tribal Welfare) Sudam Marndi, chief of Unicef field office in Odisha Yumi Bae, officials of the Central and the State Government were present.

Jual Oram’s statement on mines Ordinance

BHUBANESWAR: Union Tribal Affairs Minister and BJP leader Jual Oram on Thursday said the State itself contradicting its view on the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 which has been given Presidential assent on Monday. 

Oram said the State sometimes says that the Centre didn’t communicate with the State and passed Ordinance unilaterally and sometimes says that the Centre didn’t take the State’s grievances into account though the latter had intimated the former. “These two phrases are contradictory to each other,” he said, adding, “If the State had complained to the Centre before the Ordinance is passed, how the same State is accusing the Centre that the latter didn’t communicate before taking decision.” 

The Union Minister said the MMDR Act is a Central subject and it has the right to make the amendment trough Ordinance route. “I’m surprising that why the State is opposing the Centre’s decision,” he added.

Notably, the BJD had opposed the mines Ordinance and termed the Centre’s decision undemocratic.     

BJD opposes mines Ordinance

--State wanted to take credit: Dharmendra

BHUBANESWAR: The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Wednesday opposed the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Ordinance, 2015 which got Presidential assent on January 12.

The party in its reaction termed the Centre’s act as undemocratic and criticised the Central Government for taking unilateral decision. Party spokesperson Amar Prasad Satapathy said that the Centre has taken the decision through ordinance route by ignoring the State. The State Government has demanded for abolishment of the provision for the Centre as authority for revision and to allow States to levy tax or cess on minerals, he added.

“We also asked for taking the State into confidence while leasing out mines,” Satapathy said, adding, “The Centre closed its eyes to the suggestions from us.”

Meanwhile, the Congress also criticised both the State and the Centre on the MMDRA Ordinance. “This ordinance has been prepared to legalise the illegal mining in the country. There is a hidden agenda behind the ordinance which can be easily pointed out,” said Pradesh Congress Committee president Prasad Harichandan. 

Countering the allegations Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the State Government is shedding crocodile tears only when they failed to get success in their agenda. “Why Naveen Patnaik-led BJD Government didn’t come up with a law on auction of mines within its 15 years of ruling the State. When the Centre took a decision regarding mining, the State took a decision on that day to take false credit only,” said countering the BJD allegation.

Pradhan further said, “If the State had any problem regarding this, it should have informed the Centre before.”     

BJP leader Manmohan Samal said the BJD Government was unable to perform their duty. Proper utilisation of natural resources was not done. Instead, mining scams happened in the State. There was no way the powers of the state has been restricted, he added.

Petroleum Minister launches sale of 5kg LPG cylinders in city

--also launches subsidy LPG connection for BPL families

BHUBANESWAR: Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday launched two schemes of his ministry, sale of 5kg LPG cylinders and subsidised LPG connection for BPL families of the country, in a public function held at Salia Sahi slum in the city.

Pradhan launched the sale of 5kg cylinders under free trade LPG (FTL) scheme in the city to cater the LPG requirements for all sections of society including economically weaker families, students and migrant labourers who do not have proof of address due to acquiring residence on temporary basis. Such customers can buy 5 kg LPG cylinder at market price. 

Oil India officials said the FTL scheme could be available at nine retail outlets in Bhubaneswar and four retail outlets in Cuttack. Subsequently the sale of cylinder under FTL scheme is proposed at various locations of Udyan Fresh outlets in the city, they added.

The officials said that there is also a waiver of Rs 500 for getting a 5kg connection for the BPL families which includes Rs 350 security deposit and Rs 150 as cost of regulator. One consumer can avail 34 5kg subsidized cylinders in a year at the cost of Rs 161 under the scheme, they added.

Pradhan also launched another scheme to provide new LPG connections to the below poverty line (BPL) families at a concessional rate for three months. “BPL category people can get a new LPG connection with a rebate of Rs 1600 for 14.2 kg cylinders. 

The rebate includes Rs 1450 as security deposit for cylinder and Rs 150 as cost of pressure regulator.