JAGATSINGHPUR/SAMBALPUR/ANGUL : Ahead of the first anniversary of BJP government in the state on June 12, deputy chief minister and Agriculture minister KV Singh Deo took stock of various development projects in Jagatsinghpur district on Monday.
Singh Deo’s review meeting in Jagatsinghpur came after Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi despatched his cabinet colleagues to the districts to undertake a comprehensive stock-taking exercise on implementation of programmes and delivery of services to the people.
During the meeting, the deputy CM expressed dissatisfaction over the district administration’s move to seal a rice mill in Balikuda and seize a large quantity of paddy without following due procedures. He highlighted that the authorities failed to inform the rice mill owner about the quantity of seized rice, obtain signatures from authorised representatives and witnesses, or provide a duplicate copy of the seizure list before sealing the mill.
Singh Deo directed the officials concerned to submit a detailed report on the issue immediately. He also instructed the local police to take action against the district civil Supplies officer for not submitting required documents after filing a case against the rice mill.
On February 13, Civil Supplies officials had raided the mill and seized nearly 3,000 rice bags that were suspected of being intended for illegal export to Bangladesh. Three tractor loads of rice were also seized and handed over to local police.
In Sambalpur, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra on Tuesday chaired a high-level meeting in the collectorate to review progress of various development projects in the district.
Reviewing implementation of various state and Central schemes, Patra emphasised the need for speedy execution of developmental works and urged officials to resolve bottlenecks with timely decisions. He also stressed the importance of field visits, especially in areas where land and forest clearance issues are pending.
Amid growing discontent over alleged irregularities in paddy procurement in the district, the minister met with a delegation of farmers and took note of their grievances.
Similarly, Industries Minister Sampad Swain held a review meeting in Dhenkanal to take stock of various ongoing projects in the district.