Keonjhar: Giving impetus to the party’s electioneering, BJP president Amit Shah Friday promised the people of Keonjhar that a mega steel project will be set up in the mineral-rich district after the saffron brigade comes to power.
In an apparent bid to woo the people, Shah also made promised setting up one more medical college in the district.
“The state is rich in natural resources, but its people continue to remain poor under the Naveen Patnaik-led dispensation,” he said addressing a Vijay Sankalp rally at the medical college ground here.
Shah said the BJD regime in the state was marked by misrule and corruption.
Ridiculing the Chief Minister, Shah said, “Even after ruling Odisha for 19 years, Naveen (Patnaik) Babu cannot talk to his people in Odia.”
He asserted that the BJD government has failed in all fronts including education, healthcare and communication.
The BJP chief accused the BJD government of being complicit with the mining and chit fund scams.
Sharing his party’s plans for the tribal-dominated district, the BJP chief said a steel plant will be set up here if they are re-elected to power at the Centre.
“Under the District Mineral Fund, a sum of Rs 1,600 crore has been allocated to Keonjhar. If the BJP is voted to power again, all forest produces will be procured from the tribals at Minimum Support Price (MSP) and no GST will be levied on tendu leaves,” Shah added.
He added that people across the country are raising slogans in favour of the BJP.
“From Kashmir to Kanyakumari, from Odisha to Gujarat, people are raising slogans in favour of Narendra Modi. We can hear Modi… Modi… chants everywhere,” Shah said.
Slamming the opposition Congress, Shah said, “Rahul Baba’s party ruled the country for 70 years, but could not eradicate poverty.”
“The BJP-led government, on the other hand, launched an era of development in the country, marked by speedy and concrete steps to eradicate poverty,” he insisted.
He highlighted the various welfare programmes and schemes undertaken by the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre.