Bhubaneswar: The BJD on Friday contest the central government's claim that no tribal from Odisha would be affected by the Polavaram dam of Andhra Pradesh.

The BJD claimed that hundreds of tribal families from Odisha would be displaced by the project.

Union tribal affairs minister Jual Oram had on Thursday told the Rajya Sabha in reply to CPI member D. Raja's question that no tribal family would be displaced due to the project.

"As per Polavaram Project Authority's clarification, submergence and displacement of people, including the scheduled tribes, is unlikely in the territories of Odisha and Chhattisgarh if the state governments opt for construction of protective embankments in these territories," said Oram.

However, BJD leader and former minister Sanjay Das Burma on Friday disputed him and said that 15 revenue villages and ten hamlets in Malkangiri district would be submerged due to Polavaram dam. As a result, 6,888 people, including 5,618 tribals of Odisha, would be displaced.

"Instead of protecting the interest of the tribals, the Central government is protecting the interest of Andhra Pradesh government," alleged Das Burma.

Oram, however, said the BJD government in Odisha was playing politics over the Polavaram dam issue. "This is yet another chapter of the state government's inefficiency," he said.

BJP's Odisha unit general secretary Bhrigu Buxipatra accused the BJD of adopting double standards over the Polavaram project. He asked the Odisha government to implement protective measures as suggested by Polavaram Project Authority "instead of playing politics and misleading the people".

Odisha government has been opposing the Polavaram project and has filed a case in the Supreme Court, which is pending.

However, Andhra Pradesh government continues with its construction at Polavaram which is at the root of the controversy.