Congress leader and former Minister Ganeswar Behera, in a Press meet on Saturday, criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s heaping praise on Bijay Kabi, who is director of NGO ‘APOWA’, for making a mangrove forest of 25 acres in Badakot village under Rajnagar block. Behera alleged that it is purely unfortunate and irresponsible act on the part of the Prime Minister and Chief Minister to praise Kabi without knowing the truth.
While PM Modi on his 75th episode of Mann –ki- Baat had praised Kabi for converting a 25 acres of land into a mangrove forest at Badakot on March 28, CM Patnaik too patted Kabi on his tweeter page on March 13 by tweeting “Commend the efforts of environmentalist Bijay Kumar Kabi and local villagers in Kendrapara’s Badakot village who have created 25 acres of mangrove forest in 12 years. This initiative will inspire others for afforestation and protect the environment.”
“How could the PM and CM act irresponsibly without sufficient fact checking and conducting an inquiry? They praised the person and made him an example for others without knowing the truth,” said Behera, adding that it is the villagers of Badakot who have raised the forests in two acres of land while Kabi does not have anything to with the project.
So it is a case of misplaced generosity, said Behera. Behera alleged that in 2015, the Forest department had given a project to Kabi’s NGO ‘APOWA’ for raising mangrove in 42 hectares of land in four seaside villages, including Goja, Chitakhola, Debendranarayanpur and Charigharia under Rajnagar block with funds of Rs 10.72 lakh under the Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project(ICZMP) programme.
One Somanath Barik of Silapokhari village later filed an application under RTI Act before the Rajnagar Mangrove Forest and Wildlife Division to get information on the mangrove afforestration project.
The reply provided by the concerned authority was rather surprising. It was told that 99 per cent of saplings were found non-existing in most of the villages by September 17, 2016. Only, 50 per cent of planted mangrove saplings were found existing in Junusnagar village. On the basis of an allegation of misappropriation of funds, an inquiry is even underway against APOWA, informed Behera.
He demanded an apology from the PM and CM for their irresponsible act, besides a high -level inquiry in the matter and action against the NGO and its director for misleading fact by fake publicity.
