"Only double-engine govt can bring development in Odisha": Dharmendra Pradhan

Angul (Odisha) [India], May 14 : As Odisha braces for both Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, Union Minister of Education and Minister of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, and BJP Lok Sabha candidate from Sambalpur, Dharmendra Pradhan, held a roadshow in Chhendipada, Angul district on Tuesday.
He rallied in support of MLA candidate Agasti Behera, emphasizing that only a double-engine government can bring the development that Odisha deserves.

During the campaign trail, Dharmendra Pradhan requested that people bless Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the third term. He also asserted that only a double-engine government can ensure rapid development in Odisha.
Speaking at the rally, the Union Minister said, "After running 24 years of stable government, why the people in Odisha are poor... There are no doctors in hospitals... I appeal to people to bless Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the third term and support Chhendipada assembly candidate Agasti Behera to form a double-engine government in Odisha..."
Speaking with ANI, Pradhan said, "I have said earlier also that the trust of people in PM Narendra Modi has increased. There is a Modi-Leher and we will win all four Lok Sabha and minimum 18 Vidhan Sabha seats... This time, Biju Janata Dal will be thrown out of power."
Taking to his official X handle, Dharmendra Pradhan tweeted, "Joined the MLA candidate Agasti Behera in BJP's 'Victory Resolution Meeting' in Chhendipada Constituency of Sambalpur Parliamentary Constituency."
He added, "Public trust in Prime Minister Narendra Modi is continuously increasing. People have already made up their minds to change Odisha for drinking water, irrigation, education, healthcare, and employment issues."
The Union Minister also conveyed gratitude to the people of Chhendipada for their support of the saffron party. "Thank you for the blessings to BJP in Chhendipada Constituency. Chhendipada will make its invaluable contribution to fulfill the vision of a developed Odisha and a developed India. Twice the lotus, twice the development," he tweeted.
The assembly and Lok Sabha polls in the BJD-ruled state are being held across four phases--from May 13 to June 1, with the counting of votes scheduled for June 4.
In the last assembly elections in 2019, the BJD won 112 out of 146 seats, while the BJP had to settle for just 23 seats and the Congress finished at 9.
In the Lok Sabha elections in the same year, the BJD mopped up the lion's share of the electoral spoils, with the BJP and the Congress bringing up the rear. The BJD won 12 seats, the BJP finished a close second at 8, and the Congress bagged just a lone seat.