Kendrapada: The World Bank authorities have expressed displeasure over the inordinate delay in handover of the roadside land required for widening of the 106-KM long Cuttack-Chandballi State Highway in state, official sources said. The funding agency has refused to start road widening work for the Rs 800 crore worth State Highway project as the state government agencies have failed to make the transfer of the 30 per cent of roadside land to the executing agency, sources said.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a final reminder to the chief secretary of Odisha to furnish action taken report and proof of the payment of compensation to the displaced in the Reba-Kapali river renovation project by June 6.
Amid allegations of severe discrimination in the payment of compensation to the land oustees in the Reba-Kapali river renovation project, the government officials are now under the scanner of the NHRC, who are trying to escape punishment.

Bhubaneswar: South Korean Ambassador to India Kim Joong-Keun on Wednesday said Seoul was waiting for New Delhi's proposal for setting up a nuclear energy station in India. "We in Korea were expecting it but because of the not very positive atmosphere around nuclear power and energy, we are waitiung for India's proposal in this regard," he said, while replying to a question here by reporters.

Bhubaneswar: Optimistic of establishing Posco's proposed mega steel project near Paradip in Jagatsinghpur district, South Korea on Wednesday said that the company could revise its plan and go for a small capacity plant instead of its original design of setting up a 12mtpa steel mill. We are eager to complete whole size plant as planned in the state. If the situation does not permit to do so, we have to be satisfied with a smaller size, said Kim Joong-Keun, ambassador to the Republic of Korea in India.

Bhubaneswar: Health and family welfare minister Prasanna Acharya on Saturday said that the state government has decided to strengthen the infrastructure of the drugs control administration to ensure availability of quality drugs to the patients. Addressing a two-day conference of Drug Inspectors here, Acharya said as part of upgradation of the drugs control administration, the minister said that as decided, the state government has decided to appoint another 21 Drug Inspectors, taking the cadre to 65 during the current financial year.

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has written to the Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL) proposing that the MCL set up a 10-MT-per-annum coal washery in joint venture between the MCL and the Odisha Power Generation Corporation (OPGC). In a letter written by commissioner-cum-secretary, energy G Mathivathanan, it is also proposed to set up a CFBC boiler-based power plant under the same joint venture to use the rejects produced from the washery.

Bhubaneswar: Chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday said that due to various measures taken by the government, the maternal and infant mortality has considerably come down in the Odisha. The state government is also trying to further improve healthcare facilities to pregnant women and new born babies, he said after unveiling the e-janani logo of Janani Surakshya Yojana (JSY) scheme here.

The state has reported 100 point decline in maternal mortality rate since 2003. It has come down to 258 point from 358 during the last six years.

Bhubaneswar: An alert was sounded along the Odisha coast on Wednesday with warnings issued to fishermen and people following the massive earthquake off Sumatra coast. The alert was issued to the administration in six districts - Balasore, Bhadrak, Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada, Ganjam and Puri, Special Relief Commissioner (SRC) P K Mohapatra said.

Though there is no cause for worry, the government may take steps to evacuate people in some coastal areas if necessary due to the possibility of high tides, he said adding people, particularly tourists, have been asked to remain watchful.

Bhubaneswar: While the Odisha government has been raising the issue of alleged neglect from the Centre so far as flow of financial assistance under various programmes is concerned, the state at the same time is losing huge funds for irregularities and tardy implementation of the Central projects every year. And during the last five years till 2011, there was a loss of about Rs 191 crore due to curtailment of Central assistance in case of two of the Centrally-sponsored schemes, Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) and Backward Region Grant Fund (BRGF).

Jagatsinghpur: A team of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), led by its member Satyabrata Pal visited Dhinkia, Nuagaon and Gadakujanga panchayats in Jagatsinghpur district today to investigate into the incidences of human rights violation in the proposed Posco site area. The team visited Polang and Noliasahi villages of Gadkujang panchayats.