Surat: The maiden event of Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik in the Diamond City was more like a show of strength with thousands of Odia community members coming to see him and also film stars and others on Monday evening.The visit of Patnaik to the Diamond City, which has more than 7 lakh migrant Odia workers, is important in view of Lok Sabha elections in May 2019. Patnaik was in the city to attend Odisha Mohatsav organized by Surat Pravasi Odia Samaj at Amroli.Addressing the gathering, Patnaik said Surat is home to migrant population from Odisha and that the state’s people are working in textile, diamond and chemical industries. Odisha Government is taking steps to ensure that its people in Surat were well protected and had facilities such as trains, flights, community halls, schools and high schools for their benefit.Patnaik said, “More than 7 lakh people from Odisha staying in Surat are ambassadors of Odisha’s culture and traditions. I was longing to meet all of you. I have written to Union aviation minister Suresh Prabhu and railway minister Piyush Goyal demanding direct flights between Surat and Bhubaneshwar and two new trains between Behrampur and Surat for Odia people in Surat.”Patnaik added, “We have urged Gujarat Government to provide one acre land in Surat for setting up an Odia community centre for the welfare of the population. The community centre will help Odia people in holding meetings and marriages, etc” He said migrant Odias in Surat will be covered under Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana.

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