New Delhi, Feb 3 (PTI) BJD MP Sasmit Patra on Thursday lashed out at the Centre, saying it had ignored the demand of Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik to include six lakh tribal families in the state under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Gramin)

During the debate on the Motion of Thanks on the President's address, he also accused the Centre of ignoring procurement of rice from farmers of the state.

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In 2019, 2020 and 2021, three letters were written to the central government and it was demanded that 6 lakh homes, majority of which are of tribals, be included in the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Gramin), the Rajya Sabha member said.

But the Centre has not heeded to his (Patnaik) demand yet, the BJD MP said.

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"There is a housing portal of the central government. That portal needs to be opened. The housing portal has not been opened for the last three years. This window is closed. This window opens for whom. This window opens for those states to whom the central government loves more. This window opened on January 13 this year. This window did not open for Odisha. It opened for Karnataka," Patra said.

He said it is good that the window opened for the people of Karnataka and 25 lakh families there, but questioned the Centre over not including the demand of Odisha.

"What crime have six lakh tribal brothers and sisters committed for whom the window is not opening since the last three years," Patra said.

President Ram Nath Kovind in his address to the joint sitting of Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha had said that more than two crore pucca houses have been provided to the poor under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana as a result of the efforts made in the last few years.

He had said that 1.17 crore houses have been approved Under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Gramin), at a cost of about Rs 1.5 lakh crore in the last three years.

Patra said, "If you could include 1.17 crore houses then why are you unable to include six lakh houses of tribal brothers and sisters since the last three years. What is the confusion? What wrong have they done?"

He said that the present establishment is not thinking in line with its mantra of "sabka sath, sabka vikas, sabka prayas".

The Rajya Sabha member said every state is making an effort to take lead in the progress.

He said that the hockey world cup happens in Odisha and the state contributes the highest in GST besides providing minerals to the country.

"You need Odisha for GST, mines and minerals but why is Odisha not being given its right?" Patra said.

He said that it is good that the government did record procurement of crops to match the record production done by the farmers.

"You procured 900 lakh metric tonnes and benefitted over 1 crore farmers. It is good. If you are procuring 900 lakh metric tonnes then why are you refusing to procure 22 lakh metric tonne of parboiled rice of Odisha?" Patra said.

He said the Food Corporation of India refuses to buy parboiled rice.

The MP said that he could not find the word federalism in the speech.

"Has the federal system become out of context or has become obsolete? This is an important issue not just for Odisha. In coming days it will raise question marks on the federal system," Patra said and requested the government to work on the issues raised by him.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)