Naveen inaugurates water treatment plant, Highway four-laning project in Berhampur

Source: The Sambad

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated a new drinking water treatment plant at Dakhinapur on Tuesday to alleviate drinking water crisis of Berhampur city.  He also laid foundation stones for an elevated storage reservoir at Lanjipalli area of the city and for a project to strengthen drinking water supply in this perennially drinking water scarce city. Officials of the Public Health Engineering Organisation (PHIO) said the new water treatment plant inaugurated by the Chief Minister would augment the shortfall of drinking water supply to the city.  It may be noted drinking water crisis always remained a major issue during elections in Berhampur and the elections to the Berhampur Municipal Corporation (BMC) is expected to be held next year.

The new drinking water treatment plant inaugurated by Mr. Naveen Patnaik has the capacity to treat water of 20 MLD. According to the authorities, Berhampur city which has a population of around 3,70,000 needs 50 MLD water. Earlier, there used to be shortfall of over 13 MLD water for the city, which would be fulfilled by this new water treatment plant, they said. It was claimed that now the city would get 50 MLD of drinking water supply. Out of it 30 MLD would be supplied from the Dakhinpur source, 16 MLD would come from Rushikulya drinking water supply project and four MLD from production wells in the city. Another project proposal estimated to cost Rs. 59.09 crore to streamline drinking water supply in Berhampur has also received administrative approval by the State government. The project would involve laying of around 208-km water pipeline and construction of 11 underground reservoirs and 17 elevated storage reservoirs. State Housing and Urban Development Department and PHEO in a release stated that a proposal was also on keeping in view the increasing water needs of the city in next 30 years. This envisioned project involves bringing water from Janivili anicut through closed conduit which would enable supply of 125 MLD of water to the city. The project was expected to cost around Rs. 274.80 crore.

During his visit Mr Patnaik also laid foundation stone for the development and four-laning project of the stretch of NH59 that passes through the city.

Source: The Hindu

Source: The Sambad

Odisha to invite bids for vegetable retail chains in Berhampur and other cities

The horticulture department of the Odisha government will soon come up with tenders for setting up of vegetable retail chains in Berhampur and other cities of the state like Sambalpur and Rourkela, after a similar initiative in Bhubaneswar. The department has already facilitated setting up of two vegetable stores, branded as ‘Udyan Fresh’ in the capital city with the help of private players and aims to open at least 18 more. In the adjacent Cuttack city, it has plans to open five such stores. “For Berhampur, Sambalpur and Rourkela towns, we have not decided how many stores will be there. We will notify it in our next expression of interest advertisements,” said K B Dash, an official dealing with the ‘Udyan Fresh’ scheme, in the Directorate of Horticulture, Government of Odisha. These stores are being set up as part of a scheme of the Central agricultural ministry, launched in 2011. Known as vegetable initiative for urban clusters (VIUC) plan under the Rastriya Krishi Vikash Yojna, it has little more than Rs 12 crore provision for Odisha in the current fiscal. The scheme envisages development of vegetable clusters and opening up of retail stores for ensuring supply of good quality vegetables to a city or town in every state having a population of one million and above. In the case of states with smaller population, the state capital city or township having less than one million population are also covered. As per 2011 census, no city in Odisha has a population over one million. However, the combined population of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack goes beyond two million, according to an estimate.

The expression of interest will be open for domestic and international investors too, informed the horticulture official. “Companies like Reliance Fresh can apply for the stores like it has done in Andhra Pradesh. Foreign investors too can apply after the recent central government decision,” said Das, referring to the latest announcement by the Union government allowing foreign players to invest in retail sector. Under the VIUC scheme, the promoters would be subsidised for setting up selling stores, buying refrigerated vehicles and establishing cold stores, apart from buying farmers' produce. So far, the state horticulture department has identified three vegetable clusters in the State.

Sources: Business Standard & The Hindu

Phase-1 of Gopalpur Port to be completed by March 2013

Cargo-handling capacity pegged at 3.5 million tonne with construction of one berth initially

The first phase of Gopalpur port being developed by Gopalpur Port Ltd is likely to be completed by March, 2013, an official said. "The work is under progress and all efforts are being made to begin cargo handling by March 30, 2013," one of the directors of GPL M M Moharana said. The cargo-handling capacity would be around 3.5 million tonne with the construction of one berth initially, he said. GPL will construct three berths -- coal, iron and multipurpose in the same year, he added. Besides the port work, other supporting infrastructure like power distribution system, railway and road connectivity are under process to meet the deadline, he said. He, however, said construction was hampered due to agitation by some people. "We are trying our best to meet their demands. We have decided to involve some prominent persons of the area, including local MLAs (Gopalpur and Chhatrapur and MP from Berhampur) to sort out their problem," Moharana said. The company director said the Gopalpur Port Dock Workers' Union affiliated to the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) threatened to launch an agitation following injury of a worker allegedly due to attack by the GPL officials. Company officials, however, claimed that the attacker was not an employee of the Gopalpur Port Ltd. GPL was awarded the project for the development of an all weather port by the state government with an investment of around Rs 1,700 crore in 2008. "We have already invested around Rs 320 crore so far in the port project," Mohrana said.

Source: Business Standard

Airports Authority of India to conduct feasibility study for development of airport near Gopalpur

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has suggested Union Minister for Civil Aviation Ajit Singh to provide adequate infrastructural support to the aviation sector in the state for ensuring unhindered industrialisation and flow of tourist traffic to Odisha. The Chief Minister impressed upon the Union Civil Aviation Minister that there was an urgent need to take up the development of airstrips at Gopalpur and Jeypore in Southern Odisha and asked the Union Minister to take up feasibility studies to develop these into airports. The chief ministe said the state does not have adequate air connectivity. It has only one operational domestic airport in Bhubaneswar which is also deprived of international operations. Official sources said the Union Civil Aviation Minister suggested that Odisha should also explore the possibility of developing new airports in PPP mode and assured that Airports Authority of India will conduct necessary feasibility studies for the development of Jeypore and Gopalpur airstrips.

The Chief Minister urged the Union Minister to declare Biju Patnaik Domestic Airport as an international airport without delay and fulfill the pending legitimate demand of air connectivity of the state. Mr Patnaik requested the Minister for starting international operations from Bhubaneswar to Middle East and South East Asian countries by Air India and other domestic airlines.  He also suggested that Ministry of Civil Aviation should initiate the process of promoting Odisha as a world-class tourist destination and provide necessary support for holding a major conference in Bhubaneswar in the early part of 2013.

He apprised the Union Minister that the state has witnessed huge investments in various sectors and the total investment of the state stood at Rs.3.21 lakh crore during the calendar year 2011, also considered the highest in the country. Similarly, there has been also a significant increase in the inflow of domestic and international tourist traffic to Odisha, Mr Patnaik said and stressed the urgent need for improved air connectivity. The chief minister said the state has approved an allotment of 191 acres of land for development of Jharsuguda airport and requested the Union Minister to take urgent steps for developing Jharsuguda Airport, including expansion of its airstrip and other necessary infrastructure.

HLCA clears the proposal of Sonepur Energy City for an Energy Academy in Ganjam

Odisha High Level Clearance Authority (HLCA) chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has cleared six major industrtial project proposals worth Rs26,000 crore including the proposal for an Energy Academy at Sonepur near Berhampur city in Ganjam District to create trained manpower for the energy and oil sector. Sonepur Energy and Oil City Pvt. Ltd. (SEC) had proposed a petroleum complex and an Energy Academy at Sonepur in Ganjam district, and the HLCA has cleared the Energy Academy in its recent meeting. The Energy Academy, which would train and produce professionals for the coal and energy sectors, would be the first of its kind in the state.

Source: The Samaja

Devotees throng Panchama on Ganesh Chaturthi

Lakhs of devotees thronged to the Ganesh temple at Panchama near Berhampur city on the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi. Elaborate arrangements were made to celebrate the occasion at the ancient shrine where the Lord is believed to have emerged from a cavity of a peepal tree. Situated about 10 km from the city, near Andhra-Odisha border, the temple has 15th century architecture. The temple itself is said to have been built by King Purushottam Dev (1467-1497) during his journey to marry Princess Padmabati, daughter of then king of Kanchi. Legends say that he heard a celestial voice in his sleep asking him to appease Lord Ganesh before leaving the place to be successful. Following this, Purushottam Dev and his troops looked for an idol of Lord Ganesh and after a long search found one in the tree. He offered his prayers and after returning from Kanchi with his bride built a small temple there for daily prayers.

Though thousands of devotees from various parts of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal throng the shrine during Ganesh Chaturthi, no measures have been taken for its development.  Sources said neither the Tourism Department nor the State Archaeology have shown any interest to tap the potential of this shrine and develop it into a centre of tourist getaway. 

Handloom industry in Silk City cries for renovation

Source: The Hindu

Berhampur is famous for its intricately designed silk sarees and handloom clothes across the country for which it is popularly known as the Silk City, but the handloom industry in the city is in dying condition due to lack of proper vision on the part of the Government to save the age-old cottage industry and heritage of the State. Civil society members of the city have expressed grave concern over Government apathy towards the poor weavers who are passing through the worst period in their vocation. Since long they are after the Government for development of the handloom industry but to no effect. A civil society member and former Deputy Speaker of the Odisha Legislative Assembly Rama Chandra Panda has written a letter to the President of India citing the problems of the weavers of the city as well as of the entire Ganjam district. In the letter, Panda said the city has immense potential in the cottage industry which should be saved by extending necessary support. “Of late, due to cost burdens and non-paying labour, the industry is in dying stage which needs an overall review of the functioning of the cottage industry in the district,” Panda said, adding, “To motivate the skilled artisans to continue in the vocation for uplift in the local economy and generation of employment, the looms should be modernized while providing continuous technical support for aftercare.”

The traditional class of weavers in the Silk City is known as ‘Dera community’ comprising about a thousand families mostly residing in Ganesh Nagar, Balmikipeta, Chandrama Street in the city. There are also large numbers of people of the weavers, community residing in different parts of the district and engaged in spinning and weaving activities since time immemorial. Few such villages are Kumbharipada, Pailipada, Pitala, Padmanabhapur, Nuapada, Nuapenth, Kullad, Beguniapada, Kanteikoli, Kanchuru, Makarjhola, Hinjilikatu and Potlampur. The weavers of the city in particular are producing both elegant cotton and silk sarees through traditional weaving by indigenous looms. In course of time some of these families in order to coordinate their activities organised themselves into registered and unregistered societies or groups under the initiative of the Textile and Handloom Department of the State Government.

However, at present three such successful registered societies, each having 30 members, are functional and they are reportedly performing well. The societies are supplying silk at 10 per cent margin to the weavers and purchasing finished goods from them, selling the products through society outlets at 10 per cent margin to the public to encourage sale. Besides the 100 weaver families covered by three societies, there are reportedly 300 other individual weaving families who are engaged in spinning, weaving, dying and manufacturing both cotton and silk clothes, sarees and various other types of clothing materials carrying high legacy. The margin given by the Societies are being reimbursed by the Government. In recent past, the Government sources supplied 30 interlocking slay looms and trained the artisans to add skill potential, of which at present 10 such modernised looms are working while 20 such looms are closed reportedly due to lack of skill assistance and aftercare service. Lack of sustainable infrastructure discourages the artisans to resort to modern means, Panda wrote. He said it is understood that local textile authorities have proposed to install a CAD unit along with Transfer Technology Facility Centre at Brahmapur by establishing Training-cum-Production Centre for Weavers to facilitate skill upgradation, providing aftercare service, model weaving and designing which eventually would wipe out the difficulties as narrated above. This proposal being in the pipeline needs to be implemented at the earliest, demanded Panda.

Panda further demanded allocation of Government land to establish Residence-cum-Weaving Centres and commuaity centres to promote skill development as most of the weavers have no homestead land to establish looms for their rehabilitation and development. By this, spinning and weaving would become fulltime vocation in which a large number of women can be engaged to achieve self empowerment, he added. He also demanded that the skilled artisans after attaining 60 years should be covered under old age pension, ESI insurance and other facilities. Government of India should formulate a model policy for uniform application of such welfare measures and the weavers need to be covered under Thrift Fund Deposit scheme by providing matching grant in order to cover the statutory welfare schemes to make the vocation fulltime and secure, he suggested. “These measures may help empowering hundreds of spinners, weavers and connected artisans both in the city and in its periphery, thereby strengthening sustainable opportunity for  economic growth as mandated in the Directive Principles of State Policy in our Constitution,” Panda concluded.

Source: The Pioneer

Cricket hope for Berhampur

Barracks Stadium (Berhampur)

BERHAMPUR: The Odisha Cricket Association (OCA) is all set to open a Zonal Cricket Academy (ZCA) at Berhampur stadium. Last month, the OCA had inaugurated the Zonal Cricket Academy at Veer Surendra Sai Stadium in Sambalpur. The OCA proposes to prepare a multi-purpose games field at the Berhampur stadium through the Ganjam District Cricket Association. It has requested the state government to spare the Berhampur ground for development of necessary infrastructure for the purpose. “OCA secretary Asirbad Behera has requested the principal secretary, sports and youth affairs, I. Srinivas, to accord necessary permission for the improvement of the Berhampur stadium,” Ramesh Chandra Patra, president of the Ganjam District Cricket Association, said.

The Zonal Cricket Academy (South Zone) aims to develop cricket in south Odisha. “When the academy comes up, we will have coaches, trainers, experts and other staff to guide the players. The stadium will be equipped with all kinds of modern gadgets. It will definitely help improve the game,” said Patra. Three experts — Pankaj Kumar Patnaik, Sutu Ghosh and Sarat Chandra Sahu — drafted by OCA, have visited the stadium and discussed the matter with the revenue divisional commissioner of the southern division. The team has collected soil samples for the ground to be developed.

Source: The Telegraph

Source: The Sambad

MKCG Medical College scores over others for better health facilities

Patients skip travel, benefit from telemedicine

BERHAMPUR: The telemedicine centre at MKCG Medical College and Hospital has been helping a large number of people, who have been treated at various hospitals across the country, to save travel costs. Pratibha Panda of Somnath Nagar in Berhampur was operated upon at Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow in 2010. But she was not required to travel to Lucknow for consultations thereafter. She comes to the telemedicine centre here and her doctors review her progress. A total of 165 patients suffering from major illnesses benefited last year from this centre. By July this year, another 110 patients had used this facility. Apart from the Lucknow hospital, follow-up services are offered by Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, Sri Ram Chandra Medical College, Chennai, and AIIMS, New Delhi, to MKCG. A patient pays Rs 100 per visit and there are no user charges for below poverty line patients.

“The telemedicine centre has not only benefited the patients, but also helped postgraduate medical students, medical professionals at district headquarters hospitals, nurses and laboratory technicians. It is playing a significant role in improving medical education. Some of our experts have also participated in international conferences in Oman, Japan, Pakistan and Bangladesh through the hub at Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow,” said Rasananda Mangual, nodal officer of the centre. Telemedicine was started in Odisha in 2001 with the support of the Centre’s department of information technology and the Lucknow hospital. The same year, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) came forward with an offer to establish a telemedicine network in the state, Mangual said. “Odisha Telemedicine Network was established in 2003 that connected all the three state government-run medical colleges — SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack, MKCG Medical College and Hospital, Berhampur, and VSS Medical College and Hospital, Burla, to the Lucknow hospital through satellite-based connectivity. The hardware and software were provided by ISRO. They also provided the bandwidth free of charge,” he said.

Source: The Telegraph

Toll-free complaint number for Berhampur

BERHAMPUR: Installation of a toll-free telephone, renovation of ponds and laying of foundation stone for an aqua park and concrete roads in the town by the Berhampur Municipal Corporation marked Local Self- Government Day celebrations on 31^st August. "We installed the telephone at the BMC office to improve our services. People can now complain using the telephone. The BMC officials will look into the grievances as soon as possible," mayor S S Das said. This new system will help the poor, who cannot come to the BMC office to air their grievances, he added. The corporation has also decided to develop a modern aqua park near Agual pond in Goshaninuagaon. The well-illuminated park will come up on seven acres and will have boating facilities and other amusements. "The Rs 9 crore park will be modern in design and have separate amusement facilities for children and youngsters," commissioner of the civic body A K Mohanty. "Funds will not be a problem for construction of the park that will be funded under different government schemes," Mohanty said. But some areas demarcated for the park has been encroached upon. "We will try to free the area of encroachments," Mohanty added.

Source: Times of India