BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday called upon people to follow the principles of Pradyumna Bal, the founder of Pragativadi, a local vernacular daily. Addressing the 91st birth anniversary of Bal and the annual day of Pragativadi virtually, the chief minister said, “Pradyumna babu was a great institution builder. Apart from Pragativadi, he was also the founder president of KIIT, both of which are models of a rising and inspiring Odisha’.
Stating Bal never compromised with his principles, be it in journalism or politics, the chief minister said he is an inspiration for the younger generation. The chief minister said following his ideals, Pragativadi has served people for over 50 years. Bal’s inspiring journalistic ethics has helped the media house win the confidence of people, he added.
The chief minister said Pragativadi has succeeded in awakening the spirit of democracy and value-based journalism. Its new endeavour to revive Gandhian philosophy will certainly have a positive impact on our society, particularly on our younger generation, he added.
Stating Odisha today is making its mark in every field through its transformative initiatives, the chief minister hoped Pragativadi would keep supporting the development endeavours and the journey for a vibrant Odisha. He congratulated Krishna Singh and Banchanidhi Mohanty for receiving the Pradyumna Bal Award.
Addressing the function as chief speaker, editor of the ‘Wire’, a news website, Siddhartha Varadarajan said that the influence of money power has increased in the country’s politics nowadays. “People have the right to know about the donation received by political parties through electoral bonds. But it is not being made public deliberately. Though the Election Commission of India should take steps to correct situation, no steps are being taken”, he added.
Director of National Gandhi Museum A Annamalai spoke on relevance of Gandhian ideology and responsibilities of newspapers. Trustee of Pradyumna Bal Memorial Trust and MP Achyuta Samant presided over the meeting. Minister for agriculture and farmers’ empowerment Ranendra Pratap Swain was the guest of honour while director of Pragavativadi Monalisa Bal gave the welcome address. Chairman of the anniversary committee Krushna Mohanty proposed the vote of thanks. Executive editor of Pragativadi Birupakshya Tripathy coordinated the event.