BHUBANESWAR: The four hour hartal call given by the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in four Western Odisha districts tomorrow demanding opening of the gates of the Kalma barrage by Chhattisgarh government has come in for strong criticism from the opposition Congress and BJP.
Describing the hartal call as a political gimmick, leader of the opposition in the assembly Narasingh Mishra demanded that chief minister Naveen Patnaik should call an all party meeting and take appropriate action to protect the interest of the State.
Mishra referred to the statement of the chief minister in the assembly in 2001 where he had announced that Chhattisgarh government would not be allowed to choke the flow of water in Mahanadi river by constructing barrages and dams.
The BJD was then in the NDA which was in power at the Centre and BJD MP Arjun Charan Sethi was the union water resources minister, he said and added that no steps were taken by the state government in this direction.
The senior Congress leader said in 2010, the chief minister, however, maintained that the flow in Mahanadi river has increased by 24 percent because of construction of dams and barrages by the Chhattisgarh government.
The chief minister again said in 2016 while replying to a question in the assembly that the flow of water to Hirakud dam has not decreased. Criticising the chief minister for his inaction over the issue, Mishra said because of this, the BJP, which is responsible for the situation received support from the local people in the panchayat polls.
BJP vice-president Sameer Mohanty also criticised the ruling BJD for trying to politicise the issue and described its hartal call as a drama.