Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], May 12 (ANI): Biju Janata Dal leader and star campaigner of the party, VK Pandian on Sunday shared a comparative analysis of Gujarat and Odisha on various indicators, showing how Odisha is performing well ahead of Gujarat on various parameters.
Biju Janata Dal said in a release that it is ironic that even after two and a half decades of Bharatiya Janata Party being in power in Gujarat, its situation is quite dismal as compared to Odisha.
On his Instagram account, Pandian shared a document that compared the two States on several parameters: Health, vaccination, women holding bank accounts, per capita debt of two States and primary enrolment ratio in schools.
According to the document shared by Pandian, as per National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), in terms of malnutrition (children under 5 years who are underweight), there are 40 percent of such children in Gujarat, while Odisha has 30 percent.
The document further stated that Odisha has 65 per cent of cases of anaemia in women, while in Gujarat logged 69 per cent of the anaemic cases among women. With reference to anaemia in children, while Odisha has 64 per cent of such children, Gujarat is much worse off at almost 80 percent.
"In terms of vaccination, while Odisha has seen more than 90 per cent of its population vaccinated, in Gujarat it is in a very pitiable state of record of 76.3 per cent," the document stated.
In terms of bank account penetration for women in both states, the document mentioned that Odisha has over 86 per cent of women who have a bank account, while in Gujarat, only 70 per cent of women have a bank account. Gujarat trails Odisha by more than 15 per cent, it stated.
With reference to women having mobile phones, the document showed that Odisha is ahead with more than 50 per cent of women possessing mobile phones, while in Gujarat the number is behind at 48.8 percent.
In terms of per capita debt, while Odisha has about Rs 22,000, Gujarat has almost triple the per capita debt, close to Rs. 60,000, the document mentioned.
As per the RBI handbook shared by Pandian, the primary enrolment ratio in schools is almost 98 percent in Odisha, while in Gujarat it is just around 90 percent. The secondary enrolment ratio also sees Odisha leading at more than 80, while Gujarat is at 75.
Earlier today, BJD leader VK Pandian targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his promise of doubling the minimum support price for paddy.
"The Prime Minister has visited Odisha after five years. He visited the state in 2014, 2019, and now in 2024. The PM had promised to double paddy MSP. Has he doubled the paddy MSP? The PM is saying that the Ayushman Bharat scheme has not been implemented in the state. But you people will continue to get free health services under the state's BSKY (Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojna) scheme..." VK Pandian said.
The war of words has broken out between the BJD and the BJP in the ongoing elections.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing a rally in Kandhamal on Saturday, challenged Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to name the districts and their headquarters in the state without using paper and said that the state's development remains stunted as the government doesn't trust the people's capabilities.
"I want to challenge 'Naveen Babu' as he has been the CM for such a long time and ask 'Naveen Babu' to name the districts of Odisha and their respective capitals (headquarters) without seeing them on paper. If the CM cannot name the districts of the state, will he know your pain?" the Prime Minister asked.
Addressing another gathering, PM Modi accused the Biju Janata Dal of being "oblivious to people's grievances" and detached from the ground realities. The Prime Minister also said Odisha will support the BJP in "record numbers" in the assembly and Lok Sabha polls in the state.
Hitting back at the Prime Minister and the BJP, Pandian said that BJP leaders have been "daydreaming" of forming a government in the state for the past 10 years.
"PM Modi comes to give booster dose to the state BJP leaders and the BJP itself does not have hope that they will form government. Their leaders do not have hope that they will form government, and their grassroots cadre also does not have hope. That is why they need booster doses, but for the Odisha BJP, even booster doses will not help," Pandian said.
Pandian said there are "many election tourists" who come to Odisha during elections and say sweet words but after the elections are over, they "disappear for the next five years.".
"I ask the BJP: do the people of Odisha not deserve to know who is the BJP CM candidate? Let the people decide between Naveen Patnaik and the BJP candidate. Is it not the right of the people to know this? But the BJP is afraid to declare their CM candidate because they know that if they choose any of the current leaders , their party will get less than 10 percent of the votes. I challenge the BJP to declare the CM candidate," he said.
The BJD leader said that Odisha will be the number one state in the country and is already on that path.
"The BJP will take the state back by 24 years. They have not done anything productive for the youth of the state. That is why they are talking about vague things to divert attention," he said.
He said Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik never forgets the promises he has made to the people of Odisha, who are his family and noted that BJD manifesto will be converted to a policy document on the evening of the day of oath taking - June 9 - and will be implemented in a time-bound manner.
Lok Sabha and assembly polls are being held simultaneously in Odisha. The four-phased Lok Sabha and assembly elections will start on May 13 and will also be held on May 20, May 25 and June 1. (ANI)
