Biju Janata Dal: Celebrating People’s Blessing and Aspirations through Developmental Governance

Bhubaneswar: In democracy, empowerment of the people is paramount. Respect for people’s rights and rule of law ensures Good Governance resulting in eradicating poverty and promoting development. Across the world, the prevailing narrative today has become one of Good Governance, welfare of citizens, transparency and equitable development. The Biju Janata Dal – the party with a difference, under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, has been at the forefront realizing a rhetoric based on the just principles of true democratic values and Mahatma Gandhi’s concept of Su-Raj. Since the Biju Janata Dal is celebrating its foundation day today, an inquisition becomes necessary on why it has become a revolution and a popular mass movement in Odisha.

Naveen Patnaik, the able son of Biju Patnaik, formed Biju Janata Dal in 1997 to give Odisha an alternate to the years of negligence and fill the void of effective Governance left by the national parties who ruled Odisha for maximum. It was formed at a crucial time when the State was going through one of its most difficult times. While the new millennium was knocking at the door, Biju Janata Dal came forward and don the mantle of leadership and responsibility to take forward Odisha. Naveen Patnaik took over the Chief Ministership of Odisha in 2000 and continues till date as the longest serving Chief Minister. Under his leadership, the Biju Janata Dal has given a new direction to the state. From being a laggard, Odisha today has become the torch bearer for the country in development. Odisha’s transformation in the last two decades is nothing but the result of the farsighted policy initiatives of the Biju Janata Dal Government that has been leading the state for the last 23 years.

With changing times, the Biju Janata Dal has also evolved into a dynamic party prioritizing people’s needs and aspirations. While CM Naveen Patnaik continues to lead the state, the young and women leadership has been entrusted to take forward the development initiatives. Naveen’s strong and able leadership image has been the primary driving force for the Biju Janata Dal’s acceptance by the people of Odisha.

From the beginning, the Biju Janata Dal’s governance is influenced by characteristics such as participatory, consensus-oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and following the rule of law.

For Biju Janata Dal, Women Empowerment has been the most important aspect of development and has been the core of all governance initiatives. Through many government interventions, the status of women has been restored and Odisha today leads in their empowerment. Odisha model of women empowerment can be seen in the success of the Mission Shakti SHG movement and the rise in women participation in politics.

Value-based politics and commitment to Good Governance have been the corner stone of Biju Janata Dal. It believes in continuously working for the upliftment of weaker sections of society and fighting against social injustice. The Party has always stood for, supported and advocated in favour of women, youths, farmers, labourers, religious minorities, and the weaker/backward sections of the society.

Today, when the Party celebrates its Foundation Day, a new dawn of development politics has set in Odisha. Younger generation with dynamic leadership is being promoted to take Odisha to new heights. The joining of Kartik Pandian into Biju Janata Dal, the man behind Odisha’s spectacular transformation in the last one decade, has brought in a new excitement and rejuvenation among the party cadre and people of Odisha.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has taken a decision to bring his trusted lieutenant into the political realm so that the people of Odisha get the next rung of political leadership and the development paradigm continues. It is the culmination of the people’s demand and the need for strong leadership that will work for realization of a new Odisha as envisioned by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. It marks the beginning of a sustainable, accountable, transparent, effective and responsive leadership that will further continue and raise Odisha’s development trajectory.

It has been about a quarter of a century that CM Naveen Patnaik led the Biju Janata Dal. Now the time has come to take it to the next level by bringing in new leadership that will have a greater responsibility towards the society. Today, Naveen has chosen his most trusted aid Kartik Pandian to take a responsible position in the party and lead from the front. Keeping in tune with the times, Naveen has taken the decision to delegate the responsibility to the new generation and as part of this, he has brought Pandian into the Biju Janata Dal realm. Pandian, after joining the party has said that he has no intention to fight elections. He wants to dedicate himself for fulfilling the dreams of CM Naveen Patnaik and serve the people of Odisha. Naveen’s blessings and the huge love and respect he is getting from the people of Odisha will definitely lead the state to newer heights in the coming days.

Led by Kartik Pandian, under the 5T Initiatives, all the sectors are being transformed in the state. Healthcare, education, economy, agriculture, development of places of religious and cultural importance, modernization etc have got a thrust. VK Pandian has been actively pursuing all the efforts. The High School Transformation Program undertaken by the Government of Odisha is an example of the result of the implementation of the 5T Initiatives. Now Odisha has the best of infrastructure in the government hospitals thanks to the Government’s efforts in the last few years to augment resources for public health. SCB Medical College, Cuttack is being developed into an AIIMS plus category institution which will cater to the people the state in the next few years. The readiness of the state to fight the Covid-19 Pandemic is a bright example of Odisha’s transformation under the 5T Initiatives.

Coming under the framework of the 5T Initiatives, Mo Sarkar has been instrumental in transforming the governance in the State. The Government services have become easy to be accessible by the common man with the use of technology and bringing in a change in the working culture in the offices. Common man has become the foundation of governance today. Citizen centric services of the Government of Odisha are being provided at the doorsteps of the people thanks to the implementation of the 5T Initiatives.

One of the major innovative initiatives of Pandian is the philosophy of Ama Odisha Nabin Odisha that is being implemented in Odisha to safeguard the culture and traditions of the state. This great idea is an example of Pandian’s farsighted effort to bring social equity and transformation. It is bringing in a sustainable development to the rural areas across the state.

The legacy of the BJD-led government is firmly anchored on saving life and livelihood from disasters, ensuring food and health security to all the people, political and economic empowerment of women, uplifting millions from poverty and all round development and progress of the State. The growing popularity and electoral success of the BJD is solely credited to its Supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, who is adored by millions of people for his crystal clean image, corruption-free and transparent government. Naveen’s pro-people and development-oriented policies have made Odisha the fastest developing economy of the country. Naveen’s ‘people first’ approach has not only helped him become one of the longest-serving chief ministers in India, but also the ideal chief minister in the country.

Under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Odisha become the top destination for investments in the country. The state has attracted most investments in the last few years. The recently held Make In Odisha Conclave is a testimony to Odisha’s potential. Leading investors from across the world have announced for investing a whooping Rs 10.5 Trillion in the state in the coming days.

In words of BJD President Naveen Patnaik, no household, society, state and country has ever moved forward without empowering its women. In its endeavour to empower and provide equitable opportunities to women, following the footsteps of late Biju Patnaik, who in 1992 reserved 33 per cent of seats for women in the panchayats and urban polls in Odisha, Biju Janata Dal in 2019 elections decided to field 33 percent women candidates in the General Elections. This was for the first time in the country that a political party truly kept its promise made for political empowerment of women. The party has also been in the forefront in demanding 33 percent reservation of seats for women in all assemblies and the Parliament. It has been continuously pursuing the matter in various forums in the country. The same commitment has been seen in the recently concluded Panchayat and Urban Elections where the party pitched for the political empowerment of women.

On the ground too, Odisha has been on the forefront in economically empowering women. Its flagship Mission Shakti program has successfully empowered more than 70 lakh women of the state. They are today driving the rural economy of Odisha through Self Help Groups. It is indeed a splendid example for rest of the country. Today, as the party celebrates its 25th anniversary, the leaders and rank and file of the party and the whole State of Odisha note with satisfaction that the SHGs have now in their fold seven million women. They have heralded a new vision, hope and shown a road map for greater empowerment of women. All such wide-spectrum activities constitute the social engineering which is transforming society and economy in a decisive way for achieving positive social changes which are of lasting significance.

Keeping in tune with the changing times, the BJD government led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has been on a transformative path in healthcare service delivery. Odisha has witnessed incredible transformation in the last two decades. Never before in the history of Odisha has an overhauling of healthcare facilities been undertaken as in the last two decades.

Transformation in education is not a dream anymore but it is a reality now in Odisha. The government schools in the state are highly sought-after schools, competing with their counterparts across the nation. The school transformation initiative, driven by the 5T principles, has unlocked new aspirations and opened the door of new horizons for the high school students of Odisha. Today the government schools have smart classrooms, well-developed e-libraries, state-of-the-art laboratories, advanced sports infrastructure and child-friendly campuses. It has resulted in increased enrolment in government and government aided schools.

The Biju Janata Dal Government has given utmost priority on transformation of the heritage sites in the state. Starting with the Puri Srimandir, the Naveen Patnaik Government has taken the initiatives for the facelift of major heritage sites, such as Lingaraj Temple, Maa Chandi Temple in Cuttack, Nilamadhav Temple, Kantilo, Sarala Temple in Jagatsinghpur district, Samaleswari Temple development in Sambalpur, Maa Taratarini temple in Ganjam district and other major temples under 5T initiatives. The BJD Government has also allotted funds for repair and beautification of several mosques and churches, affirming its commitment to respect all faiths equally and uphold secularism. Recently, the Government has initiated the development of the Joranda Mahima Shrine with a cost of more than Rs 160 crore.

The steady transformation of the government and the service delivery mechanism is a result of the Naveen Government’s people-centric governance agenda. The agenda looks at the common man as the master and the government is there to serve them. Today’s new Odisha is a confident state that is working for the betterment of the people without depending on others. The transformation of the state is not confined to any single sphere or department but overall. All the elements of a welfare state are imbibed in the transformation agenda.

The energy of Odisha’s youth and its ever-increasing skill-set cannot be harnessed without the development of its sports infrastructure. Odisha’s transformation story goes parallel to the development of sports infrastructure in the state. In the last two decades, the sports infrastructure in the state has undergone massive transformation.

Odisha is one of the most vulnerable States to natural calamities, witnessing major disasters every year often. Under the leadership of Naveen Patnaik, the state has emerged as a role model in the country for its disaster management techniques to tackle different natural disasters like devastating flood, Phylin, Hudhud, cyclone, drought etc., in a successfully.

The Biju Janata Dal today has emerged as a formidable force in Odisha because of its pro-people policies and initiatives. It has withstood various intimidations by various anti-people forces. But the leadership of Naveen Patnaik and a disciplined cadre of team BJD under the young brigade is sure to take Odisha to newer heights. The days to come will witness a development paradigm that is based on the welfare politics and equitable growth.