The chief minister of the Indian state of Orissa, Naveen Patnaik has asked the central government for early approval of 45 roads in the Maoist-affected districts in the state to address the issue by development of the region.

The CM pointed to the spread of Left- wing extremism in the state and raised the issue during his meeting with Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Dr CP Joshi in New Delhi. The CM had also informed the union minister of the damage caused by September floods.

New Delhi/ Narayanpatna (Orissa), Sep 29 : On the day when Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi was distributing three-wheeler scooters to the specially-abled persons in New Delhi, in far way Orissa, Maoists dismembered the throat of a polio-stricken Dalit villager in the tribal dominated Narayanpatna area of Koratput District.

Chandipur (Orissa), Sep 26 : India on Monday successfully test-fired its indigenously developed, nuclear-capable, ballistic missile Prithvi-II from the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur on sea in Orissa.

The missile was blasted off from the launch complex number three in the ITR at 8:58 a. m. The missile with a maximum striking range of 350 km is capable of carrying a pay-load of 1,000 kilogram.

Bhubaneswar, Aug 25 :The hunger strike by 15 people in Orissa in support of social activist Anna Hazare's demand for a stronger anti-corruption bill entered the 10th day Thursday, India Against Corruption
(IAC) that is backing Hazare said.

Two activists - Bhabani Parija, 50, and Rajnarayan Jena, 30, have been fasting here, Nishikant Mohapatra, a local coordinator of IAC, told IANS.

Eight others are fasting in Kalahandi, four in Bolangir and one in Sambalpur, he said.

No major health complications have been reported so far, Mohapatra said.

Bhubaneswar, Aug 23 : Normal life was hit in Orissa's Balangir town as schools and colleges were closed and shops downed shutters due to a shutdown called by residents Tuesday to support Anna Hazare in his crusade against corruption.

All the private establishments were closed in the Balangir district headquarters town, about 325 km from here, with people spontaneously supporting the 24-hour strike, a district police officer told IANS.

Commuters also faced difficulties as private buses and commercial vehicles went off the roads, he said.

According to reports, Naveen Patnaik, Orissa’ s Chief minister, accounted that in past two years, the State's IT exports have crossed Rs 1,300 crore, as a result of which, about 10,000 , employment opportunities would be offered by the sector.

At the Kalinga Park Phase II, of Global Software Development Centre of TCS’s stone foundation ceremony, the announcement was made.

Bidding for the Orissa ultra mega power project is set to close on August 1st after bids were invited in June of last year and the deadline for bidding was extended six times.

The Orissa ultra mega power project is one of nine 4,000 megawatt capacity coal-fired plants being built across the country to expand access to electricity.

Bhubaneswar, June 10 : Aluminium prices are likely to remain in a range of $2,500 to $2,700 a tonne for at least the next two-three months, India's state run National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) said Friday.

"We believe that in the short term in next two to three months the prices should remain range-bound between $2,500 and $2,700," B. L. Bagra, NALCO chairman-cum-managing director, told IANS.

Bhubaneswar, April 14 - An anti-displacement group Thursday here rejected the claim of the Orissa government that there were no tribal inhabitants or other traditional forest dwellers in the proposed site of the $12 billion POSCO steel project in the state.

The POSCO Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS), which has been spearheading the movement against the project in the coastal district of Jagatsinghpur, said the state government has for the third time submitted false information.

Bhubaneswar, March 17 : The state-run National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) has cut its aluminium price by Rs. 2,500 per tonne for the domestic market as the international price of the product has come down, a senior company official said Thursday.

"We have decreased the price by Rs. 2,500 per tonne of all aluminium products in the domestic market and it will be effective till March 31," the official told IANS.

The price of aluminium is governed by the international market. The rate has been revised as its price has fallen on the London Metal Exchange (LME), he said.

Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL) announced its ambitious plan of setting up biggest steel plant of world in Orissa. Jindal Steel is all set ready to commission first phase of its 6 mtpa steel project by March, 2012. Company's managing director and Vice-chairman Naveen Jindal had a meeting with Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik.

As per official sources, individuals holding BPL cards in the state of Orissa would be covered under Rastriya Swasthya Bima Yojana from the coming fiscal.

Orissa's Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik made this declaration during a high level meeting.

The minister stated, "The BPL families to be covered under the health insurance scheme will pay only Rs 30 per annum in order to get benefits."

Bhubaneswar, Nov 3 - Oriya singer Bhikari Bal, who has sung hundreds of devotional songs, died at a government hospital in Orissa after a prolonged illness. He was 82, family sources said Wednesday.

Bal died late Tuesday at Sriram Chandra Bhanja medical college hospital at Cuttack, some 26 km from here, where he was undergoing treatments since over a week after developing several old age-related complications.

He is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter. His last rites will be performed Wednesday at the temple town of Puri, some 56 km from here.

The Central University of Orissa in Koraput has approved an accord with Bangalore-originated Narayana Hrudayalaya, globe's well-known cardiac care organizations and that is on its track to turn into one of world's leading health cities.

Narayana Hrudayalaya put signatures on a MoU on Friday, with the University that shall make way for improved cooperation amid the two centers in medical learning, clinical know-how and investigation.

In a major event that took place in the country, the Posco review panel ahs recently submitted a split verdict in regards to the South Korean steel maker's Orissa project.

While a dominant part of the verdict viewed the revoking of environmental and coastal regulation zone clearances, a source in the government said that the reworking of the proposal may open new gates for the project in the coming times.

Heavy showers set off due to depression above the Bay of Bengal crushed many areas of Orissa today, troubling usual life and hindering Durga puja festivities.

The depression, which lay centered at approximately 300 km east-south-east of Gopalpur, is possibly to strengthen into a deep depression, a elder meteorological official expressed. The recent environmental state and numerical weather prediction (NWP) models recommended that the system is expected to move north-westward.

According to health representatives, cholera and other water-linked illnesses have taken lives of two more people in the state of Orissa.

The new cases have been reported from the state's Rayagada region on Saturday, which increased the death toll to 37 since August this year.

Health department's Deputy Director Bikash Patnaik stated, "Two more deaths were reported Saturday. The toll in the district has gone up to 37."

Recent reports claim Swine flu to be on a constant rise with state gripping in fear and also the latest being one more person tested positive for swine flu in Orissa.

The total number of cases of infected people rose to 74 since July, an official reported.

The recent news came from all the way from Bhubaneswar, Bikash Patnaik, joint director of the state health department told IANS, stating that the throat swabs of other two susceptive people were stated to be negative giving a sigh a relief to the family members.

In a totally new twist, Korean steel maker, Posco's plant in Orissa has got a red signal from the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests.

The ministry has asked the state government to stop all the work related to the steel plant as they are in direct violation of the forest rights law.

This ban is also implemented on land acquisition. Said minister for environment Jairam Ramesh that the, state government has already been given the orders.

The steel scion- Vedanta group has launched its 300 crore Industrial township project in Orissa Industrial over a spread of 80 acres, scalable to 150 acres.

Designed to accommodate Vedanta's management and its workforce, the township consists of bungalows, 2500+ apartments, studio apartments, hostel accommodation and various facilities including shopping, a health club, school and health care centre.