While politics in the country still remains glued to the disquiets emerging from the walls of JNU or Jamia or Shaheen Bagh, in Odisha, it is the tranquil of heritage that takes the centre-stage.
Even the chief minister opted out of the 71st Republic Day guard of honour preferring a role of a guest of honour.
Patnaik has his own realm and the changing variety of programmes related to people keeps his spirits up. He is hardly seen submitting to anyone except to the people.
And that is how he synergise his time and schedules. His programmes are prioritised in advance and accordingly, the things hit the ground and create a certain discomfort for the adversaries.
In a way, he enjoys the criticism and allows his adversaries their length of freedom but doesn’t quit in the middle except, on exceptional reasons which are born of peoples’ ire or opposition.
It is a fabulous contrast that shows Odisha and rest of the country in different shades.
In an enviable departure from the choruses centring the CAA and NRC, Patnaik has stuck to his new recourse and among which the 5T slowly emerges to become a dividend-oriented one.
May be in a piece-meal manner but the visits by the 5T head have been able to dispel the notions about a purported attempt at upholstering bureaucracy under one man.
As long as results surface out, there is nothing wrong even if the new idea gets in the nerves of a fraternity which usually chose to remain holed up in the state capital. One finds rare instances of the bureaucrats in the past two decades making visits to institutions linked to public services which under the 5T has at least made a start.
Patnaik’s new found love for the tourism, as a whole, was in fact, the need of the hour in contrast to the routine claims by officials and politicians that, Odisha is blessed with an immense tourism potential comprised of so and so.
