Bhubaneswar: Political blame game over cyclone Titli and subsequent floods continued in the state with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) blaming the state government for its alleged failure in managing the calamity.
The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) slammed the BJP for politicising the issue while the Congress blamed both the state and the Centre over the issue.
Taking a jibe at BJD government, Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan alleged that the state government was not properly prepared for the very severe cyclonic storm Titli and the subsequent floods.
In a video message, Pradhan said during his visit to the cyclone-hit Gajapati district, people alleged that the state government had not created adequate awareness about the natural calamity.
“Sitting in Bhubaneswar ruling party leaders and government officials are claiming that they have ensured ‘zero causality’. But, dead bodies are being recovered even after eight days. You are behaving like a Sahukar. You think that you can manage any issue by doling out money,” he said.
Pradhan added that power supply is yet to be restored, relief materials are not being distributed to all affected and there has been huge loss of livestock.
Reacting to this, BJD spokesperson Arun Kumar Sahoo said Pradhan should first learn how to respond during a natural disaster. However, it is unfortunate there are people who wish for occurrence of such disaster for their political gains, he added.
On Sahukar remark, the BJD leader said, “If someone is a Sahukar, he will look at others from that angle. First he should act as a social worker, learn about his responsibilities during a natural disaster and then only think of becoming a political leader.”
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Jaydev Jena said, “Both the state and Central governments are indulging in political blame game for their personal benefits. No one is here to help the affected people in this situation.”
PNN
