Bhubaneswar/New Delhi, June 23: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday met Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, seeking his intervention to expedite the release of 15th Finance Commission grants to the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) of Sambalpur and Deogarh for the fiscal year 2024–25.
In an official statement, Pradhan’s office emphasized the importance of these funds, describing them as crucial for essential developmental activities such as road upgrades, sanitation, urban beautification, and improvements in health and wellness infrastructure.
Additionally, Pradhan urged Khattar’s support for various urban initiatives, including affordable housing schemes, the PM SVANidhi programme, e-bus services, and effective waste management solutions in the region.
Earlier in the day, Pradhan paid tribute to Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee on his 72nd death anniversary. Remembering him as a visionary, Pradhan highlighted Mukherjee’s historic stand against the dual system in Jammu and Kashmir in 1953, which ultimately led to his martyrdom.
“Dr. Mukherjee believed that two separate systems could not exist in one nation. He sacrificed his life for a united India,” Pradhan said, adding that the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 was a long-overdue fulfilment of his vision. “It took 72 years, but the dream he fought for was finally realised under the leadership of our Prime Minister.”
Pradhan was joined by Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, BJP MPs, Delhi Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta, and other senior party leaders in commemorating the occasion.
Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee, founder of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh—the ideological forerunner of the BJP—also served as the Minister for Industry and Supply in Jawaharlal Nehru’s cabinet.
