Bhubaneswar, Nov 30 (IANS) The opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) is set to draw the Union government’s attention to a range of issues concerning Odisha during the upcoming Winter Session of Parliament, scheduled to commence on Monday.

Party sources on Sunday said the BJD will raise allegations of large-scale electoral irregularities during the recently held Nuapada bypolls in Odisha. They noted that the party has approached the Election Commission of India (ECI), New Delhi, several times in the past to voice concerns about electoral discrepancies during the 2024 polls in the State as well.

Apart from the poll-related concerns, the BJD will reiterate its demand that Odisha be granted Special Category State status.

Other issues the party plans to take up in Parliament include the deteriorating law-and-order situation and rising crimes against women and children in Odisha, the multi-crore police recruitment scam in the State that is currently being probed by the CBI, and disputes relating to Polavaram and the Mahanadi.

The regional party will also press for the doubling of the minimum support price (MSP) for farmers and the revision of coal royalty and the green tax; the establishment of full-fledged AIIMS hospitals in Sambalpur, Koraput and Balasore; resolution of 139 pending proposals concerning the ST list for Odisha; inclusion of Ho, Mundari, Bhumij, Saora and Kui languages in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution; and the complete withdrawal of Goods and Services Tax (GST) on kendu leaf.

BJD sources further said the party will raise the issue of rising prices of essential commodities and unemployment — matters affecting the entire country — during the Winter Session of Parliament.

Notably, the Winter Session will begin on Monday (December 1) and continue until December 19.

A day before the session, a series of strategic meetings began on Sunday in which floor leaders from political parties discussed issues for almost two hours. Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said on Sunday that 50 leaders from 36 political parties took part in the meeting.

Rijiju added that the government is ready to discuss every issue amid smooth transaction of business in the Winter Session of Parliament starting on Monday.

–IANS

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