Facebook fight
CMO Odisha, the official Facebook page of the chief minister’s office, seems to be gaining popularity with each passing day, though not all comments are entirely flattering.
On Friday, soon after chief minister took part in IIT-Bhubaneswar’s foundation day celebrations as chief guest, the page was flooded with reactions, both critical and complimentary.
“It is a central government project, where is your project Mr. Patnaik?” said one of the visitors.
Within seconds, there was another comment, this time in defence of the chief minister and his government. “We know it’s a central project but it is done through CMO, Odisha. CMO is also dedicated to the project,” wrote a man who seemed to be an ardent supporter of Naveen Patnaik.
Balancing act
Chief minister Naveen Patnaik has become a master of the political balancing act. He has given ample proof of this by striking a power balance within BJD in Jagatsinghpur district, the trickiest of all the organisational districts of the party. Aware that excise minister and party veteran from Jagatsinghpur, Damodar Rout, detests the fact that his arch rival Bishnu Das is district unit president of the party, he gave the former an opportunity to prove his credentials as an organiser during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s programme at Paradip to dedicate Indian Oil’s refinery to the nation last week. While Das had no scope to protest, this boosted Rout’s ego and ensured that the power balance in the district remained even.
Praise from PM
Critics of the Union minister of state for petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan within the state BJP have been silenced following the praise showered on him by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inaugural function of Paradip oil refinery. Modi’s pat not only meant that Pradhan was doing a good job as minister, it also implied that the BJP central leadership wanted to project him as its most important leader in Odisha. The speculation that Pradhan, who is also very close to BJP national president Amit Shah, would be projected as the party’s chief ministerial candidate in the 2019 elections has, in a way, been confirmed. This has left his detractors fall in line with no other options.
In limelight
Any publicity is good publicity. That seems to be the case with BJD’s Niali MLA Pramod Mallick, who has been in the media focus ever since a video of him sporting a BJP cap and scarf and walking along with BJP supporters on the day of Prime Minister’s Paradip programme went viral on social media. While Mallick alleged he was forced to put on the scarf and cap by BJP supporters who made him walk with them, saffron party leaders dismissed the charge, saying the MLA had done this willingly. However, irrespective of who is speaking the truth, Mallick has ever since been garnering a lot of publicity with statements and interviews on TV channels. And going by his body language, the MLA seems to be enjoying it all.
Tricky questions
Children can ask the most innocent and sometimes the trickiest of questions. And unlike adults, who may let you go after a while, kids can be quite persistent about extracting a reply. Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation commissioner Krishan Kumar had a first-hand experience of this during a recent programme organised by a voluntary organisation in the capital on the smart city theme. “What are we children going to have for us in the smart city?” a 10-year-old girl asked Kumar, who promptly replied that children will have parks to play. “That’s all?” she persisted. “No you will also have Raahgiri,” Kumar said, hoping his reply would satisfy the child but she was far from done. “But Raahgiri is just for a day, what about other days?” she asked, leaving the commissioner lost for words.
FOOTNOTE
Winning hearts
The new director-general of police, K.B. Singh, has slowly but steadily endeared himself to the media.
His friendly nature and the fact that he is willing to share information unless it is classified, are the two factors that
have helped him strike an excellent rapport with reporters. Besides, he has also been lucky due to the fact that
ever since he joined the police force, the Maoist menace has come down in the state, especially in south Odisha, to a considerable extent.
The arrest of the Dhal Samant brothers in Cuttack has been another major achievement of the state police. Even the chief minister seems happy with his performance so far. “That is what really matters,” said an officer.