 "Naveen Patnaik takes views of 100 organisations on Mahanadi issue")
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for the second consecutive day held parleys with above 100 organisations including some political parties on the Mahanadi water dispute issue ahead of the tripartite meeting in Delhi on September 17.
"Representatives from over 115 organisations including political parties like CPI, Samajwadi Party, Rastriya Janata Dal, trade unions like AITUC, CITU and Krushak Mahasangha today met the Chief Minister and gave their opinion on the Mahanadi issue," an official statement said here.
While most of the organisations suggested that the state government to put pressure on Chhattisgarh to immediately stop constructions on upstream of Mahanadi, some political parties wanted Patnaik to demand formation of a tribunal to resolve the dispute with the neighbouring state which allegedly undertook construction unilaterally.
As the State Secretariat was crowded with people coming down to the state's highest administrative office here, the police had a tough time. "We are told to relax entry of the people to the Third Floor of the state secretariat," a security officer said.
Most of the over 1,000 people that took part in the meetings came from the districts likely to be affected due to the possible slow flow of water of Mahanadi. Such districts are Sonepur, Sambalpur, Bargarh, Angul, Kendrapara, Cuttack, Jagatsinghpur, Nayagarh and Khurda, an official at the CMO said.
Meanwhile, major opposition parties Congress and BJP, which have refrained from the parley on Mahanadi issue, criticised the state government accusing it of "sponsoring" people to meet the chief minister.
"Patnaik has been forced to meet the people on Mahanadi issue in view of the statewide criticism. It is his political compulsion," BJP state president Basant Panda said.
Congress spokesperson Sarat Rout said, "The people are being brought to meet by the BJD leaders. It is totally a sponsored programme enacted at the secretariat.