BARIPADA: The district BJP will protest Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s visit to Mayurbhanj on October 22 to launch the distribution of Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) smart health cards, said Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti and Tribal Affairs Bishweswar Tudu on Tuesday.
Briefing mediapersons, Tudu, also the MP of Mayurbhanj, said it is meaningless to distribute smart cards in the tribal-dominated district as the State government has failed to provide basic healthcare to people. “Despite the presence of a medical college and hospital (MCH) at Baripada, patients are not getting basic facilities due to shortage of doctors. Most of the patients are being been referred to SCB MCH in Cuttack and other private hospitals outside Mayurbhanj,” he alleged.
Terming distribution of smart health cards a joke, Tudu said the CM has a habit of launching the same project a number of times. He gave the example of Subarnarekha Irrigation project which was inaugurated for the second time in Baripada block. The Union Minister claimed that for the CM’s programme, at least 40 MLAs and 17 Ministers are camping in the district. “What is the need for such a large number of elected representatives visiting Mayurbhanj at the expense of public money?” he questioned.
The CM has plans to inaugurate Jambhira mega water project during his visit. But surprisingly, the project work is yet to be completed. With an eye on the upcoming panchayat elections, the CM will inaugurate several projects and launch smart health cards in Mayurbhanj, Tudu alleged.
The Union Minister also accused the district administration of not providing land to set up small and medium scale industries in Mayurbhanj. Among others, MLAs Prakash Soren, Sanatan Bijuli, Bhaskar Madhei, Zilla Parishad president Sujata Murmu and BJP’s district president Kandra Soren were present.