By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, June 9, 2016 : Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday dedicated 75 drinking water projects and 100 new bridges built under Biju Setu scheme in a function organised at the state Secretariat here.

The chief minister also unveiled the logo of the Biju Setu scheme and claimed that the 100 new bridges dedicated on Thursday would benefit 16 lakh people of the state.

“The State Government is dedicating various projects every month as part of the Biju centenary celebrations. It gives me great pleasure to dedicate the 100 bridges and 75 drinking water projects on this occasion,” said Patnaik speaking on the occasion.

“The Biju Setu scheme was started in 2011 with an objective to provide all weather road connectivity to isolated areas of the state. So far, we have built 481 bridges under this scheme. While work is in progress for 302 projects, we have decided to build 153 more bridges,” he added.

Speaking on the drinking water projects, the Chief Minister said that the government has so far facilitated piped drinking water to 1.5 crore population of the state.

“The 75 drinking water projects dedicated today would benefit 1,15,000 people across 182 habitations. My government is committed to facilitate benefits enjoyed by urban population in rural areas. Panchayats would be strengthened and the gap between urban and rural areas would be reduced. We are committed to facilitating basic amenities to the rural population,” said the Chief Minister.