BHUBANESWAR: Even as Nabakalebar is only two months away, the State Government has not taken any step on the recommendations of an inquiry commission headed by a retired High Court Judge on stampede in Jagannath Temple in 1993 as the report is said to be missing.
The Government had appointed a commission under Commission of Enquiry Act headed by retired High Court Judge Jeevan Mohan Mohapatra on December 5, 1993 to probe into the stampede in Jagannath Temple in which several persons had died.
Justice Mohapatra submitted the report to the then Chief Minister JB Patnaik on August 31,1995. In view of ensuing Nabakalebar, administration is expecting huge crowd in Puri during the car festival.
The issue was raised in the Assembly on Tuesday through an unstarred question by BJP MLA Dilip Ray who wanted to know whether the State Government has implemented the recommendations of Justice Mohapatra’s report.
While admitting that Justice Mohapatra Commission was constituted following the stampede during Nagarjuna Besa in 1993, Minister of State for Law Arun Kumar Sahoo in a written reply said though the Commission submitted its report, it is yet to reach the Law Department.
Describing the Law Minister’s statement as unfortunate, Ray said crores of rupees spent on commissions of inquiry are wasted in this manner.