Odisha govt committed to Angul’s development, says Dharmendra Pradhan

ANGUL: The double-engine BJP government in the state is committed to bringing about all-round development in Angul district, particularly in the fields of communication, mobile connectivity, education, social security and child nutrition, said former Union minister and Sambalpur MP Dharmendra Pradhan on Wednesday.

After attending the district development coordination and monitoring committee meeting here, Pradhan said there are around three lakh children in Angul. “There is a need to focus on improving their nutritional status. It is a shared responsibility that extends beyond’s government initiatives and requires active cooperation from the society,” he said.

He informed that the 68 km stretch of NH-149, from Pitiri to Pallahara, is being four-laned. Besides, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has approved the Khamar bypass proposal, which was a long-standing demand of local residents. He said the meeting discussed other road proposals, railway projects and various developmental works being undertaken in the district.

The MP further said discussions were held on improving the quality of education under the PM SHRI scheme. He said BSNL is adding 45 new mobile towers to the existing 250 towers in the district. The new towers will be installed in inaccessible areas of Pallahara and Athmallik. Among others, Dhenkanal MP Rudra Narayan Pani, collector A Akhtar and DIG, northern central range Ashis Singh attended the meeting.