5T Chairman Explains How CM Naveen Was Ready to Sacrifice His Govt for Parikrama Project

Bhubaneswar: 5T Chairman Kartik Pandian has revealed how Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik was very serious about taking up the Srimandir Parikrama Project without bothering about the political risks associated.

Speaking at the Plenary Session of International Conclave on Urban Transformation, the 5T Chairman said that the Chief Minister was ready to sacrifice his government for the ambitious Puri Parikrama Project.

“In the words of Puri Gajapati Maharaj, who is the titular king of Puri, the kartha of Puri Temple – he said that in the last 700 years, this has not been done. So this is like after 700 years, something has been done here”, Kartik Pandian said.

“So, when the thought came to do something for Puri by the honorable Chief Minister, so somebody very important said that are you sure you want to do this? So many years nobody has done it and he (the Chief Minister) said yes I’m pretty serious about doing this.

Without mentioning the name the person, the 5T Chairman explained that the person said there is is a huge political risk involved in case you (Chief Minister) have to take up this project.

The person who spoke to CM said he has seen the Chief Ministers who started with full enthusiasm stopped the project after 15 days or one month because they knew that they are getting into some troubled waters which may finish their political career and government may fall. That is the kind of attachment people have with this temple. So you do one mistake, your political career will be closed, you are playing actually with fire – that is the feedback which they gave to honorable CM, Pandian narrated.

“He (the Chief Minister) said that I am in my fifth term. People have bestowed so much love and affection on me and they have reposed so much faith and trust on me and people of Odisha has so much love, affection, trust, faith on Lord Jagannath – if I can’t do this for the people who have reposed so much trust and faith on me, I don’t think in history will judge me very wrongly. I’ll take the risk, I am ready for it I’ll forego my government but I’ll get this thing done”, the 5T Chairman said.

“So this is the man behind all the initiatives which you are seeing that conviction – conviction for a larger good, conviction for something which he believes that it should be done whatever is the cost may be”, Kartik Pandian added.

It is worth nothing that the much-awaited Srimandir Parikrama Project was inaugurated by the Chief Minister on January 17.