Bhubaneswar: High drama unfolded at Sishu Bhavan Square in Bhubaneswar Wednesday as a social activist climbed atop an advertisement hoarding and threatened suicide over projects for Rourkela city allegedly sent to the cold storage, officials said.
However, he was brought down hours later and would be taken to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s residence for a meeting with him, they said.
Muktikanta Biswal walked over 490 km from the steel city to the state capital to meet Patnaik.
However, when he failed to meet the CM, he climbed atop the hoarding and threatened to die by suicide, a fire official said.
Police and fire personnel reached the spot and tried to convince him to climb down. They placed cushions on the ground and kept hydraulic lifts ready to rescue him but he threatened to jump if anyone came near him. People also gathered on the ground.
“I will climb down only if the CM comes here and gives a written assurance to the people of Rourkela to complete the projects. Else, I will kill myself,” he said from atop the 25-feet-high hoarding.
Ashwini Barik, a fire personnel, said that one of his colleagues kept conversing with Biswal to divert his attention while another fireman caught hold of him and he was forcibly shifted from the hoarding to the hydraulic platform and subsequently brought down.
Water was poured over Biswal before bringing him down to wash away the diesel he had doused himself with, Barik said.
Biswal was first taken to Capital Hospital for a health check-up, after which he would be taken to the chief minister’s residence for a meeting with Patnaik.
In the hospital, Biswal told reporters that he doesn’t know whether he would be arrested but his protests will continue till the demands were met.
He had earlier staged a sit-in demonstration near Sishu Bhavan Square after arriving in Bhubaneswar.
Biswal displayed models of the projects, including a second bridge over Brahmani River and upgrading Ispat General Hospital (IGH) to a super-specialty facility.
He claimed that when he had met the chief minister in 2018, Patnaik had promised to take up the matter with the Centre.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the projects during his Odisha visit April 1, 2015.
He had also walked to Delhi three years ago to meet Modi but failed to meet him.
Biswal also spoke about other projects such as the construction of a ring road, the upgradation of Rourkela district hospital to a 400-bed facility and the construction of cold storage in villages around Rourkela.
He said foundation stones of these projects have been laid around a decade ago but there has been no progress in implementation.
His parents appealed to him through a TV channel to get down. Later, they could speak to him over the phone.