The way Odisha Assembly held its Monsoon Session

'Undeclared Emergency imposed in and outside of Assembly'

Narasingha Mishra

Congress MLAs boycotted the State Assembly protesting the State Government’s dictatorial attitude in running the House without taking the Opposition into confidence. The party MLAs met Governor SC Jamir and questioned about the Speaker’s impartiality. To know about the Congress’ stand on the issue, Hemanta Kumar Pradhan of The Pioneer spoke to Leader of Opposition (Congress) Narasingha Mishra.

How do you view the State Government getting Bills passed in the Assembly in the absence of the Opposition?

Passing important Bills without any discussion or debate has exposed the dictatorial attitude of the Chief Minister. It is contrary to the democratic norms. Even the ruling party members didn’t think it proper to discuss. In the case of the Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Bill, after a thorough discussion on a particular clause, that is 2(c), an amendment was unanimously accepted by the House. But surprisingly the next day, on the whims of an individual, which even was on record, the amendment was withdrawn. This is unprecedented and contrary to Rules of Law and the Constitution.

A Speaker is supposed to be impartial. He not only should be impartial, he should also appear to be impartial. In the last Assembly session, it was seen that the Speaker was dancing to the tune of the third floor of the Secretariat (the CM’s Office). 

               

Why did your MLAs stage walkout in the Assembly?

If what we say is not part of the record; if an amendment on legislation was withdrawn at last moment; if we are not allowed to have our say, what was left for us except walking out? Those who ask us why you walked out then tell us what we would have done.

Why did you want amendment in the Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Bill?

We wanted the Bill’s amendment because the Bill would affect lakhs of poor families who don’t have land to stay and live in Government land during last 60-70 years. This law should not be applied to the landless people and to the homestead place people and to the poorest of the poor of the society.

Passing of the Bill proved that the Government is anti-poor, pro-rich, pro-corporate and pro-industrialist.  

As people’s representatives, shouldn’t your MLAs have taken part in the Assembly proceedings to raise people’s issues?

We participated. We were allowed to participate on some issues, but when what we talked went against the Government and exposed misdeeds of the Government, it was expunged by the Speaker. We participated in the Land Grabbing Bill and could persuade the House to amend it. But exercising extra-Constitutional methods the approval of the Assembly was ignored. 

I tried to discuss about different amendments, but I was not allowed to speak. Who says we didn’t participate? We did participate in the proceedings, but our observations, debates were removed from the proceedings of the House. The Chief Minister and the Speaker left no stone unturned in suppressing the voice of the Opposition by removing the proceedings of what we said and didn’t allow us to talk. We were only asked to hear filthy language that too against a woman member. So, where is democracy? One can say undeclared Emergency has been imposed both inside and outside of the Assembly.   

   

What’s your opinion about the ruling BJD MLAs’ behaviour in the Assembly?

The BJD and its leader Naveen Patnaik behave irrationally and in an irresponsible and undemocratic manner. The ruling party MLAs were creating disturbance by not participating in the debates. They were totally afraid of facing the Opposition and facing criticism.

How do you view BJD MLAs’ alleged remark ‘Radhe Maa’ on legislator Radharani Panda?

That was most unfortunate and undignified. MLAs of the ruling party instead of protesting were enjoying the language used against a woman member and most unfortunately the Speaker was not protecting the (targeted) member. 

What steps will Congress take protesting the Government’s move in Assembly?

We met the Governor on the issue, and he called the Speaker to discuss about the impasse in Assembly. We will go to the media and then we will go to people.

We will inform them about the State Government’s autocratic attitude in the Assembly and crushing the fate of the poor by passing draconian Bills.  

The interview was published on September 3, 2015 in The Pioneer

3 yrs on, Ganjam boy finally gets Matric certificate

--The Pioneer impact--

BHUBANESWAR: The boy from Ganjam district, who had passed Matric examination in 2012, has finally received his certificates from the Board of Secondary Education (BSE), Odisha after appealing to the board several times. 

The Pioneer had reported a story headlined ‘3 yrs on, Ganjam lad yet to get Matric certificate’ on this July 1 highlighting the plight of the student Pintu Nahak of Lunghuri village under the Rambha police limits in Ganjam district.  

Normally the board issues certificates in favour of passed out students within two weeks, but it didn’t happen in the case of Pintu, a student of the Panchayat High School at Palanga in Ganjam district. 

After appearing the board exam (regular) in 2012, Pintu was happy that he would join in a college to continue his study, but it could not be materialised as he failed to get his certificate unlike his classmates.

Pintu had been requesting the BSE’s Brahmapur zone along with the BSE main office at Cuttack during last three years, but it became materialised after intervention of The Pioneer correspondent. 

“My headmaster informed me that the certificate has come to the school. I went to the school and brought the certificate. I’m so happy that finally I got my certificate,” Pintu said, adding, “But it is a matter of pain that this year also I can’t join in Plus II course.” 

According to the BSE officials, the publication of result got delayed due to change in examination roll number. Pintu’s roll number was DBP 029178 in his handwritten certificate, but it was awarded to another student of the school. Now he was awarded with his original roll number DBP 029096, the official communication said.

3 yrs on, Ganjam lad yet to get Matric certificate

Pintu Nahak

BHUBANESWAR: A boy from Ganjam district, who passed Matric examination in 2012, is yet to get his certificate from the Board of Secondary Education (BSE), Odisha.

Normally, the board issues certificates in favour of pass-out students within two to three weeks, but it did not happen in the case of Pintu Nahak of Lunghuri village under the Rambha police limits in Ganjam district.

Pintu, a student of the Panchayat High School at Palanga in Ganjam district, has been seeking justice from the BSE’s Brahmapur Zone along with the BSE main office in Cuttack during last three years, but nothing has happened till date.

In 2012, when his result was published, Pintu was happy that he would join in a college, but his hope could not materialise as he failed to get his certificate, unlike his classmates. The school headmaster said the board would issue his certificate after correcting some minor mistakes in his file. 

After receiving repeated requests from Pintu’s father Ananta Nahak, the BSE had issued a handwritten certificate for joining in Plus II course. “I had applied for Plus II course after getting the certificate, but the SAMS centre said the handwritten certificate won’t be accepted,” said Pintu.

He said he suffers so much pain and agony as he could not continue his education for the mistake of the BSE. In the situation, his father planned him to join in an ITI in order to keep him busy in studies.

But the ITI also raised several questions about the handwritten certificate and allowed Pintu to join only after getting an undertaking from the BSE, Brahmapur Zone. Even the same institution took a second undertaking from the BSE while giving him the ITI pass-out certificates.

Pintu later emailed a letter to the BSE President DP Nanda last year. Even he met the BSE Examinations Controller twice to give his certificates, but in vain.

“I had already requested the Zonal Director, Brahmapur thrice in this regard, but he every time says the Board is processing my certificates,” said the boy. 

Last year, Pintu had got an opportunity to work in a company, but he could not join due to the certificate problem. Now this year too, he failed to join in the Plus II course for the same problem, he added.

“All the Matric pass-outs got their certificates within one or two weeks after declaration of the results, but why the BSE is taking so much of time in my case!” Pintu lamented.

When contacted, BSE Examinations Controller Dr Nihar Ranjan Mohanty said they would process the certificate very soon while BSE President Nanda said on Monday that he was out of the State and would comment on the issue after looking into the files.  

Published in The Pioneer, Bhubaneswar edition on June 30, 2015 

15 minor girls rescued from Brahmapur railway station

--2 traffickers arrested, 3 detained

BRAHMAPUR: The Childline with the help of the police rescued 15 minor girls from Brahmapur railway station on Wednesday evening when they were taken to Andhra Pradesh to engage in a company. 

After getting information from a passenger travelling in the Puri-Tirupati Superfast Express, Brahmapur Childline members led by its coordinator Prabhu Prasad Patra informed the police and raided General compartment of the train to trace out the girls. The team spotted six girls in the group of Balaram Barik and Bhanu Maharana of Dhenkanal, four girls in the group of Kuni Behera of Cuttack. 

The joint team also rescued the third group having five girls led by Sushma Pradhan and Madhusmita Kanhar of Kandhamal district. The police busted the third group when they were waiting to the train in the Brahmapur railway station. During raid, the joint team found that all the groups were going to the same company. 

The girls were produced before the District Child Welfare Committee and then sent to Childline office. The police arrested two traffickers Balaram and Bhanu and detained three others for interrogation.

Childline director Sudhir Sabat said the human trafficking is increasing day by day though there is a committee against human trafficking in every district in the State. 

118 children of rag-pickers join school in Bhubaneswar

Photo Courtesy: Sangram K Das Mohapatra

BHUBANESWAR: As a positive change in the city, the rag-pickers have sent their children to schools to make them educated like other kids instead of engaging them in the menial job.

During the period of enrolment campaign of the Government, the slum-level community meetings persuaded the people to enrol their children in schools. As a result, 118 children have joined different schools during the period of the Prabesha Utsav-2015 conducted by the School and Mass Education Department as part of the process under the Right to Education Act.

City-based NGO Centre for Child and Women Development (CCWD), mobilised the slum-level committees to make the rag-pickers aware about the value of education and its need in the lives of their kids.

The NGO with the help of the Bernard Van Leer foundation formed seven child clubs along with a State-level federation, the Bhubaneswar Abarjana Gotali Mahasangha, to develop a platform for the rights of rag-pickers. Through the federation and clubs, the organisation convinced the waste gathering workers to send their children to school.

The 118 children including dropouts, rag-pickers, irregular and newcomers were admitted in the primary schools at Goutam Nagar, NAC Colony, Textbook Press, Raghunath Nagar and Budheswari Colony in the city, said CCWD secretary Sadasiv Swain.

According to the CCWD’s slum mobiliser Debabrata Mahunta, most of the parents didn’t go out on the enrolment day in order to send their kids in schools. Mahunta expressed happiness over the school management committees and teachers for encouraging little children along with parents for the good step.

On enrolment of children of waste workers’ families, Dumuduma Raghunath Nagar Primary School Headmistress Sarojini Swain said sensitisation is more essential and parents should take responsibility to send their children to school regularly. 

C Bhabani Reddy, a kid of a rag-picker from Ashok Nagar, was happy while entering to the school with his other friends. The boy, whose joy for attending the school knew no bound, said he would come to school every day.

‘Police harassed me as my Rs 10-meal is better than Aahar’

Sanjay Das

He runs his small roadside eatery in the Capital city and serves meal at a highly subsidised Rs10. He came to limelight after being detained by police for serving the meal at the Capital Hospital when the State Government launched its much-hyped Rs5-meal under the Aahar scheme. Minutes after his van started serving his meal, the Government stall began wearing a deserted look. Though police said he was detained for selling meal at an unauthorised place, the cause behind the crackdown was very clear: It was perceived that he ran a parallel scheme with probably better quality and taste of food thereby threatening to foil the Government-sponsored Aahar.

Hemanta Kumar Pradhan from The Pioneer met Sanjay Das near his mobile van canteen in the city.

Why did you moot an idea about selling Rs10-meal?

I have seen the city since my childhood. There are several poor people coming from rural areas and those who are staying in the city do not get enough money to feed their family in a hotel due to want of money. Sometimes, some people get cheated by hotels as the hotels normally charge Rs40 for a meal by giving substandard rice, dal, khata and vegetable chips. I have been witnessing this from my young age as I’m involved with roadside hotel business since 1988. It prompted me to come up with my ‘Aama Ghara Healthy Food Packet’ on October 5, 2012. We sell a meal consisting of rice and dalma by packets in mobile vans at different points of the city including Baramunda, Indradhanu Market in Nayapalli, Fortune Tower, near Rajiv Bhawan, Kalpana Square and Bapuji Nagar. We sell the meal with other items also for which extra charges are levied. We also accept orders for delivery of food at doorsteps. Our meal for Rs10 is widely famous now.

Do you get any profit from the venture as the meal is highly subsidised?

See, we should not think about loss and profit always. Honestly speaking, I have never experienced loss in my venture, though the profit is not much. For example, I INVEST Rs9.5 for  the Rs10-meal and get Rs500 from 1,000 meals. I am happy that many less privileged people get benefit from my small initiative. Yes, the profit margin is a bit higher in the other items that I sell which are given depending on the choice of the customers.

When police asked you where you GET MONEY to run the Rs10-meal programme, what was your answer?

You know people nowadays tend to get very suspicious when you do something good even if your intent is really good. I explained police the way I operate. But they were in no mood to buy my story. A police officer manhandled me. But my question is when I had launched my venture in 2012, where were the police?

Please explain what had happened on the day police rounded you up?

My helpers were busy selling meals near the Aahar counter of the Government at the Capital Hospital when the incident happened. When the customers deserted the Government stall and showed interest in my meal, police rushed to my van and took my workers to the police station. After a few minutes, the police released my workers due to public pressure and, instead, took me with them to the police station. An ASI beat me there. Later, some activists came to my rescue. Police said some auto rickshaw drivers had lodged a complaint against me for selling the meal near their stand.

Now, consider this: If auto drivers had lodged complaint against me for selling the meal near their stand, why did the police let me off? I had no problem with auto drivers, but the PCR Van came and took me to the police station in a huff. I would have been happy if the Government had appreciated my effort but, instead, it grew vindictive. The police detained me for a vague reason and insulted me. If such things continue in the State, people who do business without caring much for a big profit will be harassed while those fleecing customers will get a shot in the arm.

Hemanta Pradhan gets Laadli Media Award

--Pioneer scribe honoured--

BHUBANESWAR: The Pioneer staff reporter Hemanta Kumar Pradhan on Tuesday was felicitated with the Laadli Media and Advertising Award, a national level honour, for gender sensitivity for 2013-14.

He received the award for his story on conditions of women and children working in brick kilns in Odisha and outside the State. He was conferred with the award at a glittering ceremony organised by the Population First foundation at Vishakhapatnam.

The award acknowledges and celebrates the commendable efforts by various media at providing gender-just perspectives, portrayals and analysis. Hemanta was among the 27 journalists selected by the jury from several entries received from the country’s eastern region.

Population First director Dr AL Sharada said, “Many stories are written by journalists, but Hemanta went beyond news column. He investigated the story and filed the sad story of women working in brick kilns. " Laadli is a campaign launched by the Population First in 2005 to address the mindsets that discriminate against women, promote inequalities and justify gender-based violence.

Hemanta said, “We should try to give voice to the voiceless by reporting the struggles and problems of the less privileged of the society. We need to lend our ears to them who need us the most.”