BHUBANESWAR: The State government has decided to provide 9.68 acres of land at Khurda to the Ministry of Culture for the construction of Paika Bidroha Memorial at Barunei foothills, the battleground of Paika Bidroha. The land would be provided free of premium, capitalised value and incidental charges.
The Cabinet presided over by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, approved 17 proposals related to different sectors. The Cabinet decisions were placed in the Assembly by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Niranjan Pujari.
It has waived Rs 31.97 crore for providing land to the Culture Ministry to set up the memorial which will boost tourism besides assisting research scholars and historians. The Cabinet also cleared a proposal for the construction of Dharamshala in Baselisahi area in Puri at a cost of Rs 135.60 crore.
The project will be implemented under the Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture (ABADHA) scheme and completed in 24 months by Sriji Krupa Projects Limited, which has been roped in through tender.
The Cabinet gave its approval to a new State-sector scheme, State support to MGNREGS, to arrest distress migration in 20 migration-prone blocks of four districts - Balangir, Bargarh, Kalahandi and Nuapada.
The government will provide additional 200 days of work over and above the guaranteed 100 days of work mandated under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 in these 20 blocks.
The entire cost towards payment of wages, unskilled wage rate notified by the State government per person per day, beyond the guaranteed 100 days of wage employment under MGNREGA, will be borne by the State Government under the new scheme.
A mega pipe water supply project to provide safe drinking water in Rayagada district also got the Cabinet nod. Around 35,404 people of 129 villages under 15 gram panchayats of two blocks will benefit.
Similarly, 16,032 people of 58 villages under seven gram panchayats of Ramanguda block and 19,372 people of 71 villages under 8 gram panchayats of Kolnara block in Koraput district will be provided with safe drinking water through mega drinking water projects.
The Cabinet also approved the proposal for relaxation of the provision under para 6.6 of the Action Taken Report on recommendations of the Fifth State Finance Commission regarding assignment of taxes out of SGST in lieu of entry tax for Panchayati Raj institutions (PRls) to accommodate the salary and other establishment charges of District Rural Development Authority (DRDA) employees after their merger with the Zilla Parishads.