ROURKELA: Inauguration of the dedicated railway track of Odisha Power General Corporation (OPGC) on Monday, August 30, 2021, saw workers of ruling BJD and opposition BJP enter into a scuffle in presence of senior leaders of both parties in Hemgir block of Sundargarh district.
After Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the new merry-go-round (MGR) rail system of OPGC through video-conferencing at Manoharpur coal loading platform, Energy Minister Dibya Shankar Mishra, flagged off the first train rake in presence of Sundargarh MP Jual Oram, his Bargarh counterpart Suresh Pujari, Sundargarh MLA Kusum Tete and Talsara legislator Bhawani Shankar Bhoi, all of BJP.
Emotions ran high when Tete, in her speech, sought to highlight unemployment in her constituency including the coal-rich Hemgir block. She alleged that preference was not given to local youths in jobs. The Energy Minister interrupted her saying it was not the right platform and soon after, he left the function venue citing other pressing engagements.
Taking offence to it, BJP workers raised slogans against the Minister, drawing reaction from followers of BJD. As both sides had a face-off, police swung into action to prevent the fight from going out of control. Oram was seen pacifying BJP workers. BJD general secretary and former Sundargarh MLA Yogesh Singh too tried to calm his party supporters following which normalcy was restored. Singh said it was an official government function and not the right occasion to raise issues concerning the MLA, but Jual avoided comment on the matter.
Meanwhile, OPGC in a statement said, the MGR rail system connecting Manoharpur coal mines of Odisha Coal and Power Ltd (OCPL) in Sundargarh with IB Thermal Power Station (ITPS) at Banharpali in Jharsuguda would ensure hassle-free coal evacuation and enhance fuel security. With this, the OPGC is all set to be self-reliant on its coal requirement, it said.
The Manoharpur coal block was allocated to OCPL, a subsidiary of OPGC, in 2015. The track length between ITPS and the coal mines is 47 km while that of the loop lines and tracks at the sidings is another 19 km, thus making it one of the longest MGR systems in the country, the OPGC added.