Orissa chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s ignorance of Oriya is slowly becoming a major political issue with the Opposition Congress and the BJP raking up the matter often in recent times.

The Orissa police, which had on Sunday recovered few miniature idols, gold ingots weighing 1.12 kg, gemstones and `2 lakh cash from Mangalore temple theft accused father-in-law’s house, has stumbled upon 1 kg of more gold from his bank locker.

BJP leaders of Orissa are anxiously waiting to welcome Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi who is scheduled to arrive here on Tuesday morning.

The Orissa police on Monday arrested two of the three youth who allegedly gangraped a 28-year-old trainee nun after holding her in captivity for nearly a week.

Such has been the labyrinthine process of the law of the land that after a decade of charges and counter charges, claims and counter claims, the fate of Vedanta’s `4,500-crore alumina refinery at Lanjigarh and the future of its `50,000 crore other investments in the state will be decided by around two thousand Dongaria Kondh tribals residing in the hill slopes of Niyamgiri.

The BJP on Sunday attacked the BJD government in Orissa on alleged “distress sale” of paddy and rise in the incidence of farmer suicide in the state.

The Opposition Congress on Tuesday decided to launch an “FIR campaign” against the BJD government in Orissa, accusing it of diverting 10kg of rice meant for supply under the public distribution system (PDS) to the BPL families.

Panic reigned in the steel city of Rourkela, nearly 350 km from here, as a herd of wild elephants entered the Bisra Stadium late on Friday evening.

A woman’s blind belief that the snake is a “god creature” has led to her death.
Basanti Jena, (40), wife of Babu Jena of Adam-Maheshpur village under Mahanga police limit, nearly 70 km from here, died on Friday as she was repeatedly bitten by a cobra she was carrying on her shoulders, the police said on Saturday.

The land acquisition for the first-phase construction work of the `52,000-steel project at Paradip is claimed to have been over.