Bhubaneswar: Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan Sunday lashed out at Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, accusing him of encouraging corrupt elements instead of taking serious steps to curb corruption.
“Naveen babu was never serious about curbing corruption. In fact, he is the leader who encourages corrupt elements,” Pradhan told reporters here.
BJD leaders against whom action had been taken earlier for indulging in corrupt practices, have now become close associates of the Chief Minister, the minister alleged.
Referring to the proposed Stage-III plant of Talcher Thermal Power Station (TTPS) by NTPC, Pradhan said Odisha government should extend cooperation, as the expansion and modernisation project would make power available at a cheaper price.
He said reluctance of the state government to approve the proposed project shows its “lack of foresight”, which would act as a major setback to industrialisation in Odisha.
Claiming that the BJD government’s view on the proposed project was not based on facts, Pradhan said the state’s plea citing high cost of power tariff charged by NTPC’s Barh-I and II plants, was misleading.
The Union minister said that the Centre has been releasing huge funds for different sectors including rail, airport and power projects in Odisha and the state government should provide necessary support.
Refuting the charges levelled by Pradhan, BJD spokesman P K Deb said the BJP-led NDA government has done little for Odisha, and the allegations about corruption are being made to hide its failure.
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