Despite his reluctance to contest as MP candidate, senior BJD leader and two-time MLA Mahesh Sahoo accepted Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s proposal and won from Dhenkanal Lok Sabha constituency. He speaks to Biranchi Narayan Seth about the political twist that has taken him to the Parliament and his agenda for the region and district.
You were reluctant to contest as MP candidate. How does it feel after winning the seat?
It is true that I did not want to contest from the Lok Sabha seat but Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik persuaded me to relent. He threw his weight behind me and with the united efforts of the party organisation and all MLA candidates, I won from the constituency. All credit for my win goes to the Chief Minister. Besides his clean image and popularity, the good works of the State Government had percolated to the grassroots and touched people’s lives. They were firmly behind Naveen Patnaik.
As MP what will be your priority for the constituency?
Power supply and road connectivity to all uncovered areas along with improvement in healthcare and education. I will also work towards ensuring irrigation facilities for farmers and infrastructure development in urban areas. Scientific and technology assisted development of agriculture is another focus area. I will make efforts for setting up cold storage in every Assembly segment.
As undivided Dhenkanal district is highly industrialised with many big and small industries, what will be your role in facilitating job opportunities?
My thrust will be on implementing the State Government order of providing 15 per cent job opportunities to local skilled, semiskilled and highly skilled youth in Dhenkanal and Angul-based industries. I will seek suggestions of people and coordinate with district and State authorities in this direction.