Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has been chosen the best administrator in the country at the Outlook Speakout Awards.
An online survey conducted by the Outlook India magazine placed Naveen along with five other chief ministers Nitish Kumar (Bihar), Mamata Banerjee (West Bengal), Devendra Fadnavis (Maharashtra), Manik Sarka`r (Tripura) and Siddaramaiah (Karnataka) in the nominations for the coveted award. But Naveen Patnaik left behind all others in the race to be selected the best administrator.
“The 71-year-old Naveen Patnaik has been a Chief Minister for more than 17 years in Odisha, a feat accomplished by only a few leaders, such as Jyoti Basu , elsewhere in the country. Many attribute the success of the Biju Janata Dal president, son of former chief minister Biju Pattnaik, to his good work as an administrator. His handling of the situation arising out of the various cyclones is considered to be a copybook lesson in disaster management”, stated the online magazine.
BJD MP Tathagata Satpathy, has also been nominated as one of the best Parliamentarians by the magazine.
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In the 17 years of governance, Naveen is known to be making efforts to transform Odisha into a developing state. His clean and credible image have made him one of the most popular politicians in the country.
The BJD, upbeat about the feat achieved by the CM, has been making arrangements for celebrations both in New Delhi and party office in Bhubaneswar. The award ceremony is scheduled to be held tonight in New Delhi.
“Naveen Patnaik has the charisma as he has converted our disadvantages into advantages. The recognition will certain help us to work for the development of Odisha,”said BJD vice-president, Debi Prasad Mishra.
However, opposition parities including BJP and Congress have questioned the 'parameters' on the basis of which Naveen Patnaik was rated as the top administrator among several other chief ministers in the country.
“It is totally a sponsored thing as there has been no development in state, On what parameters Outlook rated Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik as Best Administration needs to be analysed,” BJP general secretary, Prithviraj Harichandan.