2024 was a watershed year in Odisha politics. Proving every pollster wrong, the BJP won a historic mandate on June 4, 2024 to end the 24-year-long rule of the BJD, handing a rude shock to Naveen Patnaik who was within a handshaking distance of creating electoral history as the longest-serving chief minister in the country.
With the party forming its first-ever solo government in Odisha, the BJP central leadership threw up a surprise in selecting Mohan Charan Majhi, a four-time MLA from Keonjhar, as the chief minister. Equally surprising was the announcement of the 16-member council of ministers. The party chose Pravati Parida and Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo as two deputy chief ministers. The selection of Parida, a debutante legislator who went on to be the first woman deputy CM of the state along with a veteran Singh Deo was a strong political message.
Five of the eight cabinet ministers were elected to the Assembly for the first time, so were the five in the state rank. However, distribution of plum portfolios among newcomers ignoring seniority, experience and individual efficiency did initially cast a doubt on the functioning of the government.
Keeping promises
The BJP rode on a flurry of promises – from safeguarding Odia Asmita to realising Viksit Odisha by 2036; from fighting corruption and ending bureaucratic stranglehold in governance to generating employment. Its Sankalp Patra, election manifesto, had 21 major promises of which the government has already fulfilled 11 by the end of its first year.
Within hours of taking oath, the first cabinet chaired by Majhi on June 12, 2024 took four decisions. It ordered opening of the four gates of Shree Jagannath temple in Puri. Another major announcement was for farmers in terms of additional input subsidy of Rs 800 over and above the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 2,300 for paddy. The cabinet also approved Subhadra Yojana under which women would receive cash assistance of Rs 50,000 over a five-year period. A year hence, Subhadra Yojana has been pushed as a game-changer with over 1 crore women receiving Rs 10,000 in two equal tranches. Seeking to provide economic empowerment to women, the government has also created 17 lakh Lakhpati Didis, a record in the country.
Employment was a major agenda for the BJP. The BJP in its manifesto promised to provide jobs to 65,000 people in the first two years and 1.5 lakh in five years. Majhi claims his government has given appointment to around 28,000 people in the first year. “We have decided to recruit 40,000 more in the second year,” he said.
Over the period of one year, the Majhi government has put firm focus on industrialisation having stitched up over Rs 17 lakh crore worth of investment intents in its first-ever investment summit, Utkarsh Odisha: Make-in-Odisha conclave earlier this year. It also rolled out Ayushman Bharat Yojana to augment health coverage in the state.
Its first full budget earlier this year put focus on agriculture, health and education as the government made a record allocation of Rs 65,102 crore for infrastructure and also a whopping Rs 68,881 crore for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.
Making of a ‘people’s government’
Perception matters in politics. In Opposition, the BJP always questioned Naveen’s brand of governance which was centralised with one man calling the shots. After coming to power, it made a conscious move to change the narrative with Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi at the centre. Within hours of his taking oath, Majhi threw open his doors to the ‘aam aadmi’. He met thousands of people from various walks of life at the state guest house and gave them a patient hearing. It was the first step in building what the party called the ‘people’s government’ and Majhi went on to call himself ‘People’s CM’. Breaking the barrier between the people and government, he restored the CM’s Public Grievance Cell which was closed for over a decade and a half under the BJD rule. Not just that, he has now taken it to districts. Majhi moved his Cabinet to Sambalpur where he conducted the grievance cell to a huge response and announced to follow it up in Berhampur and other places in the state.
Shedding the BJD legacy
CM Majhi has adopted an assertive approach to administration while projecting an image of simplicity and approachability. He has so far progressed admirably in establishing his leadership within the state and emerged as a tough, no-nonsense taskmaster. At the same time, making moves to remove the barriers between the government and the people.
Yet, not so much can be said about his government. A major poll weapon of BJP in 2024 elections was dismantling the power structure under BJD where bureaucracy reigned supreme. A year on, little has changed in practice. Despite the tall proclamations, the levers of power continue to remain largely in the hands of the very bureaucrats who served key roles in the previous regime.
Immediately after coming to power, the BJP leaders and ministers had announced to purge the bureaucrats that pulled the strings in the BJD government. They levelled charges against several officers and promised investigation and action against them. So far, there has not been any visible progress on that front. Many of the very bureaucrats have even gained central deputation and moved on.
On the ground too, the impact is being felt. Governance delivery has almost remained stuck all-round and all across the state. No major development project has shown progress. Files are not moving, works stalled for long periods as the administration is still to adapt and abide by the new power structure. So much so that the CM himself has recently been forced to acknowledge the issue and instruct officials to buckle up.
The party leadership, though, differs. “The major achievement of our government is restoring the democratic values which were missing in the BJD government. While the BJD government was run by a handful of bureaucrats making the ministers redundant, our ministers enjoy full freedom to take decisions and express their views without any restriction,” state BJP chief Manmohan Samal said.
Managing power
The functioning of the government, particularly the council of ministers has so far reflected the teething troubles of a team still finding its feet. Coordination gaps have surfaced, with some ministers issuing contradictory statements or speaking out of turn, leading to confusion over policy matters. Ministers are often seen grappling with issues and the lack of administrative experience is evident in delayed decision-making and mixed messaging. They seem to be still coming to terms with the responsibility of handling their departments and the expectations of a public that voted for transformation.
Double-engine, double horsepower
Double was promised and double-engine seems to be delivered. With the party winning a historic mandate in the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has thrown his weight behind the Majhi government. Since the formation of government in Odisha, he has made six visits to the state, with the seventh due on June 20 to celebrate the first anniversary of the first BJP government of Odisha. Modi not only unveiled the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, held for the first time in Odisha, in January, he also threw his strength behind Majhi government’s investment prowess with his presence at the Utkarsh Odisha Conclave. While most Union Ministers have kept making frequent stops in Bhubaneswar, key events of the Centre are being hosted in the state one after the other.
Criticism abound
The BJP may have secured a majority in the Assembly, but the Opposition BJD and Congress have not been pushed to the margins. The Opposition has been keeping the government on tenterhooks on various issues. The Assembly sessions have seen washouts due to Opposition belligerence.
Nayagarh MLA and former minister Arun Sahoo said the government has utterly failed on all fronts. “There is an absolute breakdown in the law and order situation after BJP came to power. All police stations have turned tourist destination for criminals. Women atrocities have increased manifold and criminals are roaming freely,” Sahoo said. Developmental works have come to a standstill and nothing is happening at the ground level. As the three-tier panchayati raj system is still under the control of the BJD, the government is not issuing work orders due to pressure from local BJP leaders, he said.
“I failed to understand what remarkable achievements they have made when the government has failed to stop ‘katni-chhatni’ which the BJP made a big issue before election. Also, let the government tell the people how many women entrepreneurs it has created through the Subhadra assistance,” Sahu remarked.
Senior Congress leader and also a former minister Panchanan Kanungo said the much hyped double-engine government has not brought any significant change in the last one year. It has not been able bring a major project for the state nor has grounded a single industrial project despite the claim of attracting investment intent of over Rs 17 lakh crore. Big ticket projects are, in fact, moving out of the state.
“I also don’t see any visible change except the input assistance to the farmers which was their due. The BJP government had promised to implement the Swaminathan committee report in toto. It should have been implemented nationally not just for a state,” he said.