Sambalpur, May 12: Union Minister and BJP Lok Sabha candidate from Sambalpur, Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday replied to the Chief Minister's response to the Prime Minister's questions, saying the CM is not aware of many things (Central Support) and presenting (to people) what he is given in writing.

"The Chief Minister reacted and asked the Prime Minister how much he remembers Odisha. Does the Chief Minister know the answer to the original question asked by the Prime Minister? Chief Minister is not aware of many things. He is presenting what he is given in writing," Pradhan said at a Presser here today.

Pradhan said the Prime Minister has given Rs 300 crore for the establishment of the Center of Excellence for Classical Odia Language in Bhubaneswar and the development of the Eastern Regional Language Center of the Central Indian Language Institute in Bhubaneswar. Engineering textbooks have been published in Odia language and 'Barnabodh' (script books)has been made available in the local languages such as Desia, Kui, Gadaba, Zuang and Saura, Pradhan said and alleged that the Chief Minister's question on Odissi music is completely baseless.

"Instead of thanking the Prime Minister, the Chief Minister regretfully questioned him. Allotment of land for the establishment of the Pike Rebellion memorial at the Brunei foothills in Khurda district is limited to papers only. Who lost the keys of Shreemandir? Who tried to stop Mahaprabhu's Rath Yatra during Covid, wanted to know Pradhan.

Due to the personal interests of Biju Janata Dal and its local leadership, the coastal highway work has stopped, alleged Pradhan.
The Chief Minister has always jealously stopped the plans Modi had made. During the Modi government, 609.33 million metric tonnes of paddy and rice were purchased from the farmers of Odisha, while the purchase price was about Rs 1.9 million, Pradhan said.

The Union Ministry of Culture organised special programmes to mark the 200th anniversary of the Paika Rebellion and launched postal stamps in memory. A burdgetary provison of 200 crore was made for Paika Memorial but the land you gave is still limited to paper, stated Pradhan.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken many responsibilities for the propagation and research of Odisha language, contended Pradhan.

"As many as 49 Odia people have been honored with the Padma Award during the Modi government. It is disappointing that instead of thanking the Prime Minister, the Chief Minister scolds him," lamented Pradhan.

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