Dikhyaa Mohanty Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s promise to prioritize their representation in the public sphere, as the ruling BJD selected women Zilla Parishad (ZP) presidents in 21 out of the 30 districts, which comes to a whopping 70 percent of the total posts in the State.
According to the reports, this is also for the first time in the country that women leaders are heading so many district bodies at the grassroots level, going beyond the statutory requirement of reservation of 50 percent. All the larger districts of Mayurbhanj, Ganjam, Koraput, Keonjhar, Sundargarh, Bolangir, Sambalpur, and undivided Koraput except Nabarangpur are now headed by women.
The party announced that “young, educated and talented” party workers have been chosen to the top district post with a view to mentoring them for leadership positions. Twenty-three-year-old Saraswati Majhi, a graduate hailing from the remote Kashipur block, has been selected as the youngest ZP president in the Rayagada district.
Similarly, Samari Tangul (26) from the Maoist-affected Swabhiman Anchal has been elected to the post in the Malkangiri district. She has studied till plus two. Kumudini Nayak who has been elected as the president of the Sambalpur ZP is from the remote Bamra block.
Taking to Twitter, the Chief Minister congratulated the elected ZP presidents separately and expected that the districts will witness development to fulfill the expectations of the people.
