Technical Grads to Professionals: Panchayat Polls in Odisha See Highly Qualified Candidates in Fray

Bhubaneswar: The three-tier Panchayat Polls being held in Odisha currently bear much importance not only for the political parties but also for the young generation and the society as well. Counted hitherto as an insignificant issue and politics of the old generation of politicians, the Panchayat Polls today are seen totally different.

Today, the young generation with higher qualifications, is attracted towards these polls as never seen before. Technical graduates, professionals, working in faraway places with high perks are heading to their villages to take part in this wonderful rendition of democracy and contribute to the development of the society.

The change in young mindset is not confined to any particular area or habitat. The trend is being observed in almost all districts of the state. From Nabarngpur to Puri and from Kendrapada to Khordha everywhere we have examples of young and dynamic highly educated persons coming forward to participate in the three-tier Panchayat polls of Odisha. they have come forward to serve the people and contribute in the development of the state.

A bright example of this young generation is Subhasmita Sahu who is standing for the Zilla Parishad member from Astaranga Zone 1 of Puri District. A final year BTech Student, Subhasmita left a good paying job in Mumbai and came back to the state to fight the elections. She joined the Congress party and is ready to fight against others. Speaking on her political stint, she says “I was not satisfied with the work I was doing as it never gave me a chance to serve the people of my area. My education will be worthless if I could not do anything for my people.”

Smruti Rekha Behera, an MSc MicroBiology student of Bhadrak College has big ambitions. She wants to serve the people through politics. Inspired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, she now looks for bringing in change in the society. The 23-year-old young student is standing for the Zone-13 Zilllaparishad member in Dharmasala Block of Jajpur district on a BJD Ticket. She says, “educated people can bring in change in the society. It is good that many young and educated people are coming forward in this field.”

In Ganjam’s Bellaguntha block, Minati Panda, a software engineer, has plunged into politics to serve the people and society. She is contesting the elections for the Sarapanch post from G. Nuagaon panchayat. She has left her lucrative IT job in Bengaluru to foray into politics with a mission. Similar is the story of Pinki Behera of Khallikote block. She is standing for the Sarapanch post from Pathara Panchayat which is reserved for women. She is also having a Bachelors Degree in Technology. She wants to serve the people by becoming a Sarapanch. The same inclination is also seen in the mineral rich areas of Koida in Sundargarh District. Four young persons have come forward and are fighting for the Sarapanch seat of Koida Panchayat. Dipak Barla, Sujit Lakra, Roshan Kishan and Manai Munda have come forward to join the fray and filed the nominations. Dipak is a young Engineer. For them, solving the people’s problem will be the aim by joining the panchayats.

From treatment of people to serving the people by joining politics, Sasank Sekhar Sahani of Jagatsingpur is standing for the of Zilla Parishad Member from Balikuda Block Zone-4. He has more than 20 years of experience as a dentist and has been serving the people of his locality for long. He says “I have treated many people in the district. I have a dental hospital. I can see health services in the Zone-4 are not upto mark and there are problems with basic necessities. I thought of solving the problems by being a part of this. I have to join it to solve the problems and serve the people.”

The prime motive of the young and educated generation is to serve the people and bring in change by development. They are tech savvy and are taking the help of social media to reach out to the electors. The enthusiasm shown by the young generations is surely going to add to the development of the state in the coming days.