Bhubaneswar: BJP president Amit Shah is scheduled visit Odisha on July 1 amid an escalating war of words between his party and Naveen Patnaik-led BJD on a slew of issues.

This will be Shah's first visit to Odisha after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rally in Cuttack on May 26 to mark the fourth anniversary of his government.

Though Shah's primary focus would be on taking stock of organisational work, he would discuss with the Odisha party leaders issues such as chief minister Naveen Patnaik's much talked about absence at the recent meeting of governing council of Niti Aayog and the Odisha government's cold shoulder to the Centre's Ayushman Bharat scheme. Both the issues have triggered an acrimonious debate with the BJP and the BJD taking potshots at each other.

"The party president will review the progress of the organisational work he had assigned to the leaders. These include formation of booth-level committees and meetings of constituency-level committees. Formation of panchayat-level working teams will also discussed," said BJP national secretary Suresh Pujari, who described Shah as a hard task master who has set Odisha leaders the target of winning more than 120 Assembly seats.

Union tribal affairs minister Jual Oram reiterated that Odisha figured prominently in the BJP's scheme of things for the next general elections. "Shah has said in the past that the BJP's golden age won't come until the party forms governments in states such as Bengal and Odisha. The importance of Odisha is clear from this," said Oram.

As it is the party has ramped up its activities in Odisha with emphasis on programmes such as Mahasampark yatra (mass-contact march) and Gaon Ku Chala (let's go to villages) aimed to reach out to people in the urban and rural areas. The party has also been organising meetings at villages and briefing people about achievements of the NDA government. "We are getting tremendous response from the people," said party's Kuchinda MLA Rabi Narayan Nayak, exuding confidence about the BJP winning more than 120 Assembly seats.

However, BJD general secretary Bijay Nayak said: "The people of Odisha know only one leader - our chief minister Naveen Patnaik. People will show the BJP its place in the elections."