Odisha to raise special status demand at NITI Aayog meet

Bhubaneswar April 22 (IANS) Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday said he will raise the state s longstanding demand for a Special Category status at a NITI Aayog meeting scheduled in Delhi on Sunday.

I will demand the Special Category status for Odisha. Besides I will seek appointments with certain central ministers to discuss issues related to Odisha the Chief Minister said before leaving for Delhi on a five-day visit.

The meeting of the NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog Governing Council the top decision-making body headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be held at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

The Chief Minister who is also President of Odisha s ruling Biju Janata Dal however said he has no plan to hold discussions on coming elections to the posts of the President and Vice-President.

Patnaik s Delhi visit the second in a month assumes significance amid speculation that the opposition parties are planning to field a united candidate for these elections.

--IANS
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