Bhubaneswar, May 26: The BJD and the BJP continues to trade charges over the eight million-tonne Posco steel plant project, which is hanging fire.

While the BJP blamed the state government for delay in the implementation of the project, the Naveen Patnaik government and the BJD denied the allegations. "It is not only the state government's project, it is a government of India's project as well. They have also equal responsibility to see that the project is implemented," said a ruling party leader.

Raising this issue, Union minister of state for petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan today said: "The Centre should not be blamed for the delay. The BJP is always in favour of major investment coming to Odisha, including the Posco project."

The minister said the state government had recommended mines in favour of Posco to the Centre just three days before the Mines and Mine Minerals (Development and Regulation) Ordinance was promulgated, which made the public auction mines mandatory.

"The state government should have recommended the mines two years earlier. Even the state government had failed to renew the MoU related to the Posco project in time," he said.

On May 24, Union commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman had blamed the state government for the delay in the project execution.

However, the state's steel and mines minister Prafulla Mallick refuted the allegations, saying: "The state government had written to the Centre to award the mines much before the new act came into effect. The state had written for the mines on November 1 last year, while the ordinance came into effect on January 12 this year.

Mallick said it was unfortunate that the Centre had not acceded to the state's request to treat Posco as a special case and grant it prospecting licence for the Khandadhar iron ore mines.

While the Posco continues to be a contentious issue between the state and the Centre, the BJD and the BJP also indulged in a blame game over the delay in the establishment of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) in the state.

Pradhan said: "The state should not indulge in politics over finalising the location of the proposed IIM. Three major reputed national institutes are coming to the state. We want that there should be equal development in all parts of the state."

However, BJD spokesperson Pratap Keshari Deb said: "The state government has already written letter to establish the IIM in Sambalpur. Now, they are maintaining a silence over the issue."

Deb further said the Centre should send a team to find a suitable location for the IIM. "We will welcome the institute wherever it is set up."

In another development, members of the Forum for IIM in Berhampur today staged a demonstration, demanding the institute be set up in the southern city.