Malkangiri, Feb 23 : One person was killed in Gobindpali village here on Monday as Maoists set afire to a BSNL control room, a forest office and over a dozen vehicles.

Superintendent of Police Satyabrata Bhoi said that the Maoists attacked the house of construction contractor Prasanna Swain and killed him with sharp edged weapons.

The village is about 50 kilometers from Malkangiri.

The Naxals also ransacked furniture in a forest range office and a power distribution centre, which was under construction.

Additional police force has been deployed in the area in the wake of the accident.

Bargarh (Orissa), Feb 23: An artist in Orissa unleashed his creativity to make a wooden replica of the Taj Mahal, one of the ''Seven Wonders of the World''.

Arun Kumar Meher, an artist adept in wooden art in Bargarh district took three months to create the five feet high and ten feet wide wooden replica.

"Not everyone can go to Agra to see the actual Taj Mahal made by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan for his wife Mumtaz. So, for those who have not witnessed the monument, my work will give them an idea of how it actually looks like," Meher said.

Different shades of Sal wood were used for making the replica. No external colours were added to it.

Bhubaneshwar, Feb. 21  Trawlers used in illegal fishing have killed hundreds of Olive Ridley turtles at Orissa's coast. Olive Ridley turtles are the smallest of the marine turtle species in the world.

About 2000 dead turtle were spotted at Devi river mouth in Puri district in Orissa, and hundreds of dead turtles have been found in other places like Rusikulya Mouth, Puri beach and Konark beach.

Every year, thousands of the Olive Ridley turtles become prey to the trawlers used in illegal fishing. Trapped in the sharp motor blades, many get ruthlessly butchered or suffocated in fishermen''s gill nets.

Bhubaneshwar, Feb 18 : Orissa''s Finance Minister Prafulla Ghadei said on Wednesday that the State Government has approached the Centre for grant of Rs. 1,500 Crore to counter the economic slowdown.

Ghadei said the demand had been forwarded to Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

"The world is going through a massive economic meltdown and the Indian economy and economies of states are faced with challenging times," Ghadei said in a memorandum to Ahluwalia.

Jajpur, Feb 14, : Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday visited the site of the Jajpur railway station where Howrah-Chennai Coromandel Express derailed yesterday.

According to reports, 15 people were killed and another 100 injured after the derailment of the train.

More than 1,500 people were aboard the train at the time of derailment.

New Delhi  - The Indian government has launched a high-level inquiry into a train accident in the eastern state of Orissa that claimed nine lives and left 45 wounded, officials said Saturday.

Junior Railways Minister R Velu announced that the probe will ascertain how the Coromandel Express derailed from its tracks at Jajpur, 120 kilometres of state capital Bhubaneshwar on Friday.

"The Commissioner of Railways Safety will conduct the probe and submit the report within seven days," Velu told reporters after visiting the accident site.