Bhubaneswar: It is one’s work that makes him great. This age old saying fits the best to non-other than Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, undoubtedly the tallest leader in the country.
Naveen once said, what I learnt from him was to interact with people, get close to their problems and deal with them effectively and efficiently”. And that’s what Naveen is exactly doing to serve the people for the last 20 years.
In the last twenty years he has made countless sacrifices for the people of Odisha, first he dedicated his own birth place Anand Bhawan to the people of Odisha and now he sacrified his father’s Samadhi for the salvation of others.
In a rare gesture, Naveen has decided that his father’s memorial at Swargadwara in the holy city of Puri will be shifted for creating facilities for people visiting it for cremation as the place lacks space and people have a deep desire to have final rites there.
It is believed by crores of Hindus that salvation can be obtained if one is cremated at Swargadwara, which means the ‘door to heaven’.
Politics for him became a medium to serve the people indeed. A large number of people from Odisha and outside the state come for the cremation of their loved ones at Swargdwara.
Having one’s final rites and cremation at Puri’s Swargadwara is a deep desire and wish of the people of the state.
It is believed that the true essence of happiness comes from sacrifice and making it for one’s people. Like his father who scarified his life for the development of the State and upliftment of poor, Naveen also follows his legendary father’s footstep for the development of the people.
There is a lack of space at Swargadwara due to various reasons and Odisha government has decided to remove all encroachments to make it more spacious.
Apart from beautification and redevelopment of Swargadwara, the state government has decided to create facilities and amenities for people visiting it for cremations.
Former Chief Minister Biju Patnaik is seen as an embodiment of the virtue as he devoted himself to the welfare of people of Odisha.
Keeping this in mind, Naveen Patnaik perhaps decided to move the “samadhi” (memorial) of Biju Patnaik from Swargadwara so that the place can be further developed with more space for the benefit of crores of Hindus.