Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) is a hit in Odisha

Business Standard reported yesterday that more than 500,000 bank accounts have been opened in Odisha under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), a pet project of Prime Minister Modi. This program has been projected as the first step for a comprehensive scheme for financial inclusion. On the day of launch of the scheme, over 62,000 accounts were opened.

Jual Oram, Union minister for tribal affairs along with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, who inaugurated the program said that “more than 62,720 bank accounts have been opened on the launching day and about 50 launching events are organised throughout the state,”.

The banks having operations in Odisha have overshot the target of 400,000 bank accounts allotted by the Union government to the state. More than 500,000 accounts have been opened in Odisha under the scheme, said Arun Kaul, chairman and managing director of UCO Bank. Data compiled by State Level Bankers’ Committee (SLBC), Odisha shows that 497,623 accounts have been opened in the state till August 27 through 3,010 camps.

UCO Bank, the SLBC convenor, has opened the most number of accounts (89,720) followed by State Bank of India (SBI) with 81,276 new accounts.

Among others, Bank of India has opened 32,179 new accounts under the scheme while Indian Overseas Bank and Andhra Bank  have opened 28,744 and 24,704 accounts respectively. In toto, PSU banks have opened 431,734 accounts while private sector banks and regional rural banks under the mission mode project, have opened 4,495 accounts and 61,394 accounts respectively.

Besides bank accounts, the other benefits under the scheme includes  RuPay debit card, Rs 1 lakh accidental insurance cover and an additional Rs 30,000 life insurance cover for those opening bank accounts before January 26, 2015.

Speaking on the occasion, Patnaik assured of all support from the state government for the gigantic task of covering unbanked households.

“I wish all success in their endeavour and assure them of all help and support from the state government in achieving the goal of universal financial inclusion in the state,” he said.

The chief minister also called upon the banks for opening of brick and mortar branches in all unbanked gram panchayats of the state within the specified time frame (March 31, 2019).

The SLBC has allotted 4,597 gram panchayats to the banks with operations in the state for opening of branches by March 31. For accommodating the branches, banks will be provided Rajiv Gandhi Seva Kendras free of cost for five years.

Launching the progarmme in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that though the initial target of PMJDY was to open bank accounts for 75 million families in one year, he had exhorted that the concerned officials to complete the task before January 26, 2015.  About 15 million bank accounts was opened on the day of launch of the scheme.

Supreme Court order on Coal Mines going to affect Odisha

On 25th Aug 2014 (Monday), India's Supreme Court ruled that all coal mining licences awarded between 1993 and 2010 are illegal and will now examine whether some or all 218 permits should be revoked. In the ruling, the high court said that successive governments gave rights to mine coal to state and private companies in a style that was “not fair and transparent” and without competitive bidding.

The court is also expected to rule on possible fines on firms currently holding those permits, most of which have not been developed, as mines in remote rural areas proved too costly to bring into operation.

But in the process of allocating those licences, India has become tangled in accusations of corruption and mishandling.In the past twenty years India has granted coal blocks to a range of companies in sectors such as power and steelmaking, partly to overcome fuel shortages stemming from its inefficient and state-dominated mining sector.

Coal dependent Odisha

India is one of the largest producers of coal in the world and more than half of its commercial energy needs are met by the fossil fuel. The coal-rich regions include huge swathes of eastern states like Odisha, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, and pockets in the central and southern parts of the country. 

Coal mines in Odisha are already reeling under regular protests by the local populations who are demanding compensations against the damages caused to their lifestyles due to mining activities. In Talcher area of Angul, there was a 3 days protest by locals that was brought under control after assurance by the management from the coal mining companies to compensate the people suitably. However, sources reports that still people are not happy and may go for protests soon.

Under such circumstances, state like Odisha that very much depends on the revenue for mining activities will go down for sure that will affect developmental activities in the state. This opinion by SC is definitely a headache for the naveen Patnaik government in Odisha. 

Coal shortage from Talcher coalfields causing power shortage in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh

Dr. Narla Tata Rao Thermal Power Station (NTTPS), previously Vijayawada Thermal Power Station (VTPS), is heading for a crisis. The 1,760 MW power plant, with an assured coal linkage from Talcher coal fields in Orissa, is facing severe shortage of fuel required for power generation. Telangana and parts of Andhra Pradesh are already in the grip of power crisis due to drop in generation from the Kothagudem thermal power station.

Any decline in power generation from VTPS could accentuate the situation further, officials said.

VTPS officials said the plant would require about 28,000 tonnes of coal a day. But the supply was not commensurate with the requirement. In addition, adequate stocks could not be positioned in advance due to various reasons.

In this background, officials are worried that the sudden rise in the demand for power owing to severe heat wave conditions had the potential to pose problems for the utility. Speaking to The Hindu on Friday, VTPS Chief Engineer J. Sammaiah said “We are receiving coal on daily basis and this is enabling power generation without any hassles. But if the coal supply is affected even for an hour, then its impact can be severe.” “We are getting three rakes of coal a day from the Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) as an emergency measure.

The AP Genco authorities are exploring options to procure coal from other sources to meet the increased demand,” Mr. Sammaiah said.

Though there was no problem as of now, any delay in receiving the coal consignment from Mahanadi Coalfields on account of transportation and other problems could cast an impact on the generation.

High temperatures at Talcher and employees’ unions strike are said to be the other reasons for poor production at MCL.

We are getting three rakes of coal a day from SCCL as an emergency measure, says Chief Engineer J. Sammaiah. Any decline in power generation from VTPS could accentuate the situation further, officials said.

Source : The Hindu

All you want to know about Deva Snana Purnima (Snana Yatra) at Jagannath Temple, Puri, Odisha

The Snana Yatra or Deva Snana Purnima, a ceremonial public bath ceremony of the three deities of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra is an important event in the run-up to the Rath Yatra or the Car Festival. But is it just a ceremonial bath for the ‘humanised gods’ or does it go beyond its ritualistic and puranic features ?

The day, the full-moon day of the month of Jyestha, is considered to be the birth-day of Lord Jagannath.

File Pic

According to the Skanda Purana Raja Indradyumna, who installed the wooden Deities, introduced the idea of giving Them a bath.

‘Niladri Mohadaya’, a religious text in Odia records the rituals of the Snan Yatra festival in soem detail. Sriharsa in his ‘Naisadhiya Charita’ also refers to this ritual bath of the Puri trinity.

The deities are bathed by 108 pitchers of water drawn from  a well situated near the Sitala temple in the confines of the Jagannatha temple.

There is a view that like all other major festivals in Odisha, Snan Yatra has direct links with agrarian calendar of the state and that the ritual bath signifies the onset of monsoon.

Seetal Sasthi, the popular festival in western Odisha, is also believed to have been a monsoon-related celebration, held to invoke the Rain God to soak the parched fields and ready them for ploughing for the next sowing season.

A day before the Snana Yatra the three deities of Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra along with the image of Sudarshana are taken out from the sanctum sanctorum  in a procession to the Snana-Bedi or the Snana Mandap within the temple precinct. The bathing platform is at such a height that visitors standing outside the temple can easily get a good view of the deities and the ritual bath.

After the bath, the deities are dressed up in the Gajanana (elephant) or Ganesha Vesha and their daily food offering or Bhogalagi is made on the Snana Mandap, in full public view.

After the Snana Yatra , the three deities keep away from public view for 15 days and this temporary disappearance is called the ‘Anasara’ period. The popular belief is that after the ritualistic bath the deities develop fever and therefore do not return to the sanctum sanctorum.

However, it is during this period that the ‘washed’ wooden deities get a fresh coat of colour before they appear in public in their new-look ‘Naba Joubana Besha’, a day before they set out on their chariots to the Gundicha temple. The Anabasara, therefore, appears to have been a ritual that allows the re-painting of the wooden idols before they move out of the sanctum for their public ‘darshan’ on the day of the Rath Yatra.

A special bath of Jagannath takes place on the Purnima of Jyestha month (Devasnan Purnima), to commemorate the appearance day of Lord Jagannath

File pic of Snan Yatra

On the fourteenth day (Chaturdashi – the day before the bathing – Purnima) when the Deities are taken out in procession, the whole process is called Pahandi or Pahandi vijay. Scholars have given different interpretations of the term (‘Pahandi’). Some opine that it has been derived from the term ‘Praspanda’ meaning movement. Some others are inclined to interpret it as derivation from Pandya vijaya.

For the festival the Snana Vedi (bathing platform) is well decorated with traditional paintings of trees and gardens. Flags and toranas (arches strung with mango leaves) are also put up. The Deities are profusely decorated with flowers. All kinds of perfumes such as Dhupa (incense), Aguru (oils) etc. are then offered. As the ‘Pahandi’ of the Deities takes place to the accompaniment of music and beating of various indigenous drums, thousands of devotees jostle and crave for a look at the Deities in procession.

In Puri the bathing procedure is as follows: After Mangala Arati, the Suaras and Mahasuaras go in a ceremonial procession to fetch water from Suna Kua (Golden well) in vessels of copper and gold. All of them cover their mouths with a piece of cloth so as not to contaminate it even with their breath. Then all the vessels filled with water are preserved in the Bhoga Mandap. The Palla pandas (a class of Brahmin priests) then purify the water with Haridra (turmeric), Java (whole rice), Benachera, Chandan, Aguru, flowers, perfumes and medicinal herbs. The bathing festival takes place during the morning hours of the purnima tithi. The filled vessels are carried from Bhoga Mandap to the Snana Vedi by the Suaras in a long single-line procession. This ritual is called ‘Jaladhibasa’ (Jala – water, abhishek – bath).

Prior to the bathing ceremony Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra, covered in silken cloth and then smeared with red powder, are taken in procession to a platform which is specially decorated and purified with water and incense.  One hundred and eight gold vessels are filled with water. Abhiseka is performed with this water, accompanied by the chanting of vedic (Pavamana Sukta) mantras, kirtana and blowing of conch shells.

Due to the amount of bathing liquids that are offered to cool the Lord’s transcendental body His painted form takes a bit of a wash-out. The coloration of the Deity’s faces are painted on with natural earthly mineral paints not modern oil based paints, so when water is applied to cool Their forms it also has the effect of washing away the features of the former painting. As usual the Lord has a plan to make everything go smoothly. To bridge the episode of His bathing and the period that He comes out to bless everyone for Ratha yatra He organized some special pastimes by which his devotees can serve Him and remember His wonderful forms.

So as to keep a wonderful mood of seeing the Lord in an uplifting manner the Lord arranged for the Hati Vesha festival where Lord Jagannatha and Lord Balaram then puts on the elephant dress, Hati Vesha, and Lady Subhadra wears a lotus flower vesha.  The original story is told in several different ways, some call Hati snan (elephant bath) some call Ganesh abhishek as they identify the following story as being the original cause of the Lord to wear this elephant vesh for His devotee.

It is said that a staunch devotee of Lord Ganesh who was a profound scholar visited Puri during Snana Yatra. He was amply rewarded by the king of Orissa for his scholarship. The king asked the scholar to accompany him to see Lord Jagannath which he refused under the pretext that he wouldn’t worship any “God” other than his Ishthadevata Ganesh. Somehow he was persuaded and brought before the Snana vedi.

To the utter surprise of all, Lord Jagannath appeared with an elephantine form that resembled as Ganesh. Since then during Snana Yatra when the sacred bath is performed, the Deities are dressed like elephants – resembling Ganesh. Various other legends are also told and reasons assigned explaining the Ganesh besa (vesha).

During the sacred bath the colours painted on the images generally fade.  Seeing the wooden deities in discolour devotees may not have the appropriate devotional attitude and in fact may feel sinful repugnance. For this reason, the images are immediately dressed in the Hati vesha (besa) in which they remain mostly covered.

After the Snana Yatra, the Deities are kept away from public view for fifteen days and during all these days the daily rites of the temple remain suspended. As Jagannath himself instructed, after this ceremony, he is not seen for a fortnight. The Deities are kept on a special “sick room” called the Ratan vedi inside the temple. This period is called ‘Anabasara kala’ meaning improper time for worship. It has been said earlier that the Deities are discoloured as a result of the sacred bath.

During these fifteen days the Daitas (descendants of Viswavasu, the Savara) repaint and restore the Deities and Jagannath’s fine decorations. The period of colouring and decorating the Deities is divided into seven short periods, each of two days duration, and a short period of one day set apart to give finishing touches. Thus the period covers the whole fortnight. On the 16th day the Deities in their new forms after renovation become ready for the public view – darshan.

The festival of the first appearance of the Lord Jagannath to his devotees is called Netrotsava (festival for the eyes) or Nava Yauvanotsava (festival of the ever new youth). According to priests of the Jagannath temple the devotee washes away all his sins if he gets a vision of the Lord on this day. On this occasion, therefore, great rush of people occurs in the temple. The Shilpa Shastras and Agamas testify that the Deities become suitable for worship only after the performance of the rite of ‘Chakshyu Unmilana’ (Opening of the eyes).

During ‘Anabasara’, the Daitas offer to the Deities only fruits and water mixed with cheese, and Dasa mula medicines to cure his fever.. In a devotional mood the devotees accept that due to all the bathing the Lord becomes transcendentally poorly, and therefore needs to take rest. Like human beings they are considered to have fallen ill and are treated by the Raj Vaidya or the King’s physician with specific medicines (Dasamulas).

The temple-festivals which are held in a bigger and elaborate scale in the important shrines of Puri and Bhubaneswar are also held simultaneously in all other small shrines of the respective Deities, though in modest scales. Likewise the Snana Yatra is held in many other temples of Orissa, and now all over the world.

( Courtesy : http://srijagannathmandir.com ) Source : SunTimes

Odisha as an Information technology destination

“Odisha will soon be the most preferred destination in the country for investments on software products and services emerging from the USA,” said IT Secretary, Sanjeev Mishra. He was referring to the tie-up between the State Government and Silicon Valley in Santa Clara, California at the TiE conclave.

Addressing the ‘Digital Marketing Workshop’ organised by NASSCOM and Confederation of Information Technology Enterprises (CITE), Mishra said unlike the industrial and manufacturing sectors, development of infrastructure for the IT industry is being welcomed from all quarters of the political spectrum.

Mishra revealed that several offers from electronics and hardware companies from Taiwan and Singapore to start their operations out of the State were received by the Government. Scrutiny on these offers has started, he added.

Regional Head of NASSCOM East, Nirupam Chaudhari said the company is promoting emerging companies in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. He also briefed the delegates on the schedule and agenda of NASSCOM Product Conclave (NPC)-2014, to be held at Kolkata in June.

Speaking at the conclave, Regional Head of NASSCOM East, Nirupam Chaudhari said NASSCOM has been instrumental in supporting start-ups and mid-sized software firms comprehensively. It is promoting emerging companies in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, added Chaudhari. He urged the stakeholders of the industry to prioritise and invest on research and development by catering to the service needs of the West.

Odisha joins hand with Srilanka to revive Buddhist Link

The Kalinga-India Foundation was launched at the Sri Lankan High Commission here on Thursday by High Commissioner Prasad Kariyaswasam and India's former foreign secretary Lalit Mansingh. The foundation, based in Gurgaon is part of Kariyawasam's endeavours on developing unique ties with individual Indian states on the basis of their cultural linkages with the island nation.

Besides spearheading initiatives to build upon the common heritage between Odisha-- traditionally known as Kalinga-- and Sri Lanka, the foundation would encourage investment to exploit the human and mineral resources of the two. It would also promote research in socio-cultural and economic ties and give institutional support to scholars and artistes. The more visible impact of the foundation would be to promote and facilitate the visits of tourists and pilgrims to sites in two regions.

Mansingh, a recipient of Odisha's Kharavela Samman said, “In the last decade, the state has had political stability and we get dozens of proposals for investment. The foundation would facilitate entrepreneurs from Odisha and Sri Lanka to go for joint ventures.” He added that the strategic locations of Lankan and Odia ports offers easy access to the markets of South East Asia.

Mr. Kariyawasam said that reinvigorating the ancient links of Lanka to Kalinga with a productive, vibrant and stable relationship with Odisha would complement robust ties with India. “When South Asia and Asia rise, our two regions that once controlled the sea trade at the time may also rise,” he said.

Besides a common Buddhist heritage, Sinhala kings have been from Kalinga. The founder of the Sinhala race was Kalinga's Prince Vijaya and the tooth relic of the Buddha in Kandy -- considered a national symbol of Lanka-- was also brought Dantapura in Kalinga.

Kariyawasam who is set to take on the key diplomatic role of Ambassador to the United States, had earlier facilitated the establishment of a temple to Sita near Nuwara Eliya sponsored by the Madhya Pradesh government. The High Commission has taken keen interest in participating and providing inputs to the Sanchi University of Buddhist-Indic Studies in MP.

The relationship with Odisha is linked to the rise of state's mining industry. The cultural, linguistic and behavioural similarities of Odisha and Lanka in addition to sites of common heritage like the Buddhist Diamond circuit of monuments in state are focus areas of the foundation.

Among the invitees senior politician KP Singh Deo, leader of the Biju Janata Dal in the Lok Sabha-- Bhartruhari Mahtab, renowned hotelier T. Banambar Patra, industrialist K. Madhusudana Choudary, artist Jatin Das, economist Santosh Panda, former Odisha Chief Secretary Debi Prasad Bagchi and several serving and former bureaucrats.

Orissa Essential Services (Maintenance) Act (ESMA) imposed at MCL, Talcher

Angul (Odisha): With growing dependency on energy to carter the ever growing industrial sector and over-reliance on thermal power sources, India is spending a large amount of foreign currency to buy coal from America, Australia and many other foreign countries. This phenomenon has been severely criticized by economist as well as policy makers, especially in a situation when the value of rupee is  so high against international currencies like dollar. 

Since long time many scholars are recommending the government to expedite domestic sources to produce more coals to support India's growing energy needs. However, the erstwhile Congress government was not giving any heed to such proposals. However, with BJP on the center with a full majority and Naveen Patnaik with a  never before strong mandate, the situation has changed. 

The State Government has recently imposed the Orissa Essential Services (Maintenance) Act (ESMA), 1988 in the industrial belt of Talcher for six months to prevent strike, agitation and blockade which might affect coal production and dispatch to NTPC and Nalco power plants.

Though the notification in this regard was issued by Home Department earlier this month, it reached here three days before. The notification that states that all strikes have been prohibited in Talcher coalfield and at two NTPC plants came into force from April 24.

The notification has evoked widespread resentment among the locals who used to resort to agitation to get justice in compensation, rehabilitation and resettlement issues. “The Government should solve these issues before throttling the voice of the people who are at the receiving end and are demanding justice in a democratic manner,” a local said. 

Imposition of ESMA, 1988 is especially critical because it does not allow rightful protest by labour bodies which is a direct violation of human rights as well as labour law violation. Now the question is whether people's mandate for a strong government at the center and state mean, 'allowing the authority to violate human rights for industrial development'? Why the employees at MCL must not be allowed their rightful rights?