Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s much-hyped ‘Discovery of India’ tour, scheduled to start from Orissa in the first week of March, is likely to be deferred in the wake of the recent Maoist attack at Nayagarh district, officials said today.“We have not received any information about Rahul Gandhi’s Orissa visit. But it will be difficult as his tour programme is said to be in tribal-dominated and backward regions which were hot-beds of Maoists,” Home Department sources said. The department sources pointed out that barring Kalahandi, Rahul’s entire route included naxal-infested areas. According to the Congress sources, Rahul is likely to start his journey from Orissa’s Kalahandi district on March 7, and is scheduled to tour undivided Koraput comprising Malkangiri, Rayagada and Nawrangpur districts, besides Ganjam and Gajapati districts in the southern region. The AICC general secretary is also scheduled to tour tribal-dominated Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar districts in north-western Orissa.
