Bhubaneswar: With the completion of the most important elections of the millennium, Naveen Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Odisha has emerged as the unbeatable leader who has not only won the hearts of the people of Odisha but also became an example for the whole nation.
Day by day his popularity is increasing and the Chief Minister is growing stronger in his true identity as the most esteemed leader of the state.
It seems that Naveen’s secret lies in his endeavor to make Odisha the number one state in India. Since 1997, when he jumped to state politics after the untimely death of Biju Patnaik, Naveen Patnaik has remained till date the most admired politician of Odisha. His popularity is also growing with each passing elections.
From the year 2000 to 2019, he has been the Chief Minister of Odisha for a record fifth term. What makes him succeed? How he is defying all the odds? Why did Modi wave not impact his popularity? These are the questions doing rounds in many of the discussions that are going on today.
Naveen has also given a surprise to the political analysts and opposition leaders who had taken him lightly and underestimated his popularity. One can have a close look into Naveen’s political journey from 1997 to 2019 – from the day the BJD was formed and the day when Naveen became the Chief Minister for the fifth record term, to ascertain the secret behind his success. There is little difference in his style of functioning. There is a consistency in everything. Be it his attire, activities, behavior or the administrative working style, a little change is seen.
In the last 22 years of his political journey, there is little change in his attire – Clad in white kurta-pyjama and wearing a pair of Kolhapuri chappals, Naveen Patnaik still holds the mantle of development. The sober and soft spoken politician has been consistent in his working style and stern authority. There has not been a single allegation of corruption against him in his long stint as the Chief Minister of Odisha. The opposition has failed miserably in maligning him.
The no-nonsense Chief Minister has never given refuge to corruption in his ministry or the administration and never excused them who had a slightest touch of dishonesty.
Starting from Kamala Das and Nalini Mohanty to Pradeep Maharathy, all had to face the music when found guilty of corruption or dishonest.
There is another factor responsible for his success – his people centric policies and an agenda of development. From his first government to the newest, he has been giving importance to development of the state and various people centric programs for solving problems like poverty, illiteracy and thirst. The one rupee per kg rice scheme, health insurance under Biju Swasthya Kalyana Yojana, Mission Shakti programme, reservation for women in various fields including politics, AHAAR yojana and the newest one – the KALIA Yojana have helped the people of Odisha a lot. They have really helped in reduction in poverty and economic development of the state. They have also strengthened the social infrastructure in the state.
In his first term as the Chief Minister, the thrust was on the industrial development of the state. In the second term, the one rupee rice scheme succeeded in reducing hunger. The next few years saw a slew of schemes for the farmers, women, youth, students and the backward people. There was tremendous development and change in the process of governance in the state. Hindrances like Center’s negligence and financial constraints could not affect Naveen’s efforts of development.
The continuous natural disasters are affecting the development of the State and taking it to the backward. The State has been doing everything in mitigating the disasters and minimizing the loss. It has successfully handled major cyclones that have crossed Odisha coast in the last decade and won international accolades. A robust mechanism has been placed that can fight any natural disaster effectively.
To face the nature’s fury, the State government has been demanding special category status since the year 2000. But, neither the Congress led government nor the BJP led governments have heeded to the demand.
In his latest stint as the Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen has taken a go-getter attitude towards his ministers. They have been given responsibility to develop the state. A monthly review of the developmental works will determine their position.
Above all, the Five T Mantra that the Chief Minister has given to his ministers is definitely going to have a positive impact on the development of the state. He added Time to the existing Teamwork, Transparency and Technology leading to Transformation. This is a pragmatic way to deal with the issues the state is facing. All these have proved that he is the invincible leader of the state. Not only Odisha but the country is proud to have a leader like Naveen.