Bhubaneswar, Aug.15: Chief minister Naveen Patnaik touched upon the Mahanadi river dispute issue between Odisha and Chhattisgarh in his Independence Day speech here today.
"No single state should try to assert exclusive rights on the water of inter-state rivers. This is against the federal spirit," said Naveen after unfurling the tricolour at the state-level Independence Day programme on Mahatma Gandhi Marg here this morning.
Asserting that Odisha's dignity and rights would not be compromised, the chief minister said: "Odisha believes in co-operative federalism. We are trying to resolve the dispute over the sharing of Mahanadi and other rivers within the constitutional framework. I hope we will succeed."
The Mahanadi river dispute has snowballed into a major political issue. The BJD had deputed a team to Chhattisgarh last week and the team has been busy finalising the report. The Congress has called for an Odisha bandh tomorrow.
Independence Day was celebrated across the state with much patriotic fervour despite the Maoist call to observe it as black day. Elaborate security arrangements had been made at the Independence Day parade venue in the state capital and elsewhere to thwart any untoward incident.
"The celebrations passed off peacefully across the state," said director general of police K.B. Singh.
However, a few mishaps marred the celebrations. One person was injured when a gas cylinder burst near Uditnagar parade ground in Rourkela. Sk Mousumi was selling balloons near Uditnagar parade ground, close to the school. His assistant M. Ali was helping him fill the balloons with hydrogen gas. Police took Ali into custody and are investigating the incident. Inspector in charge of Uditnagar police station P.K. Das said: "One person suffered minor injuries and one has been detained for investigation."
In another incident, 30 odd children fell ill in Lipinda gram panchayat in Sambalpur after consuming sweets distributed at the Independence Day programme. They were admitted to the district headquarters hospital.
About 64 troupes participated in the march past at the state-level parade here. Two troupes from Andhra Pradesh also took part in the parade for the first time. In exchange, the Odisha police sent its team to the neighbouring state.
"The Odisha team bagged the first prize at the parade there which carried a cash award of Rs 20,000," said Singh.
Speaking about his government's move to enforce Odia as the official language, Naveen said: "We are sincerely working towards enforcement of the language in official work."
On August 12, the state government decided to enforce the Odisha Official Language Act, 1954 with immediate effect.The chief minister announced that additional three lakh beneficiaries were included from today in the Madhu Babu Pension Yojana.
At a separate programme, Naveen gave away 41 medals to senior police officers and other personnel for distinguished and meritorious service.
