When Naveen rooted for people over populist schemes

Source: Google

This year’s Officers Conference which took off at the swanky new Conference Hall at Lok Seva Bhawan had undertones of the Chief Minister’s humane side to political leadership. Shunning his customary obsession with meeting targets and spelling out deliverables for new populist schemes, Naveen Patnaik struck an emotive note with his announcement that 4.5 crore people in Odisha constituted his family and it is on the strength of their blessings that he has enjoyed an uninterrupted reign of 20 years at the helm.

Now, it is the time for quid pro quo- Patnaik unambiguously instructed his team of officers to dedicate themselves to improving the quality of each member of ‘his family’.

“Family is of paramount importance for each of us. We desire that our children get the best of education. We wish that our brothers and sisters bag good jobs. And, we crave for the best healthcare facilities for our parents. I, too, have a family- Odisha’s 4.5 crore people make my family. It is owing to their blessings that I have got the privilege to work for the state for 20 years”, Patnaik said in an impassioned address to the attending officers.

The CM spelt out his heart’s wish- children should be entitled to quality education and the elderly need to have access to the best healthcare amenities. “All of you are the agents of transformation due in the people’s lives. This conference should serve to fulfil this avowed noble objective”, he said.

The launch of ‘Mo Sarkar’ has been epochal and its outcomes have been manifested amply on the ground, said he.

Patnaik urged all ministers and officers attending the conference to take a vow that read, “People are the soul of democracy. Every institution of democracy has been built for the people’s welfare with their money and aimed at serving and strengthening them. The police stations, hospitals, and offices are running to serve people and they are the real owners of these facilities. When people visit these facilities, they ought to be treated with civility and utmost dignity. People constitute the real government and all who are employed with the government are drawing their salaries out of the people’s money”.

Along with senior Cabinet ministers Niranjan Pujari, Bikram Keshari Arukh, the Chief Secretary Asit Tripathy and Development Commissioner Suresh Chandra Mohapatra, all district collectors and a bevy of officials had congregated for the conference.