BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has an uncanny proclivity to spring a surprise, and at the most opportune moment. On Monday, the BJD chief did it again.
While all eyes were on the announcement of the first list of BJD candidates for the phase I and II of the forthcoming General Elections, with an increase in women representation a done deal, Naveen pulled a fresh trick out of the hat.
He announced to field Pramila Bisoi, a common rural woman from the back of the beyond, from his erstwhile Aska Lok Sabha seat, which he had won thrice and had been represented by his father Biju Patnaik.
The message is not lost on anybody in this election season and further buttresses the Chief Minister’s image as a champion of women’s empowerment and emancipation.
He is not stopping at the promise of ensuring 33 per cent women candidates from his party but is going ahead to give the woman from the lowest rung a prominent role in the elevated political space.
Pramila may not be a recognised face beyond Ganjam and comes from an obscure background, but she is a hero in her own right. An SHG leader, she has been instrumental in bringing transformation in the lives of numerous women from the villages in the Aska area through SHG movement.
“In a humble tribute to the lakhs of women in our Mission Shakti movement, I have declared Pramila Bisoi, SHG leader in Nalabanta village of Aska, to be the BJD candidate for the Aska Lok Sabha constituency. Incidentally, Aska is the place where I started my political career 20 years ago,” Naveen said after announcing her candidature.
Naveen fields SHG worker Pramila
The around 70-year-old Pramila is the president of Sata Sankha SHG that provides MDM to an upper primary school at Cheramaria village. Married to Banchanidhi Bisoi, she has two sons.
Her elder son Dillip runs a tea stall in the village while the younger Ranjan has a motorcycle repairing garage. She is a marginal farmer having less than one acre of land – growing paddy and ragi – and the family sustains from the meagre earnings from the paltry sources.
However, the odds have not deterred the determined Pramila from leading her band of women to empowerment, both financially and socially.
Instrumental in forming numerous women SHGs in her area, she has also been on the forefront of creating awareness on various issues, be it sanitation, vaccination, institutional delivery or literacy and environment protection. Due to her efforts, her village has been declared open defecation free.
“It is my firm belief that empowerment cannot be compartmentalised - it has to be holistic. Women must be represented in the highest fora of decision making in the country. Bisoi represents Mission Shakti - the women’s SHG movement of Odisha”, Naveen said.
“It will be personally very heartening for me to see a grassroot SHG leader like Bisoi in the hallowed halls of Parliament,” he added.
Pramila expressed her happiness over her candidature.
“It is a reward by Naveen Babu. I had never dreamt of coming to this stage. Naveen Babu’s inspiration and his commitment to the empowerment of women has given me the strength to fight in every sphere.
With his blessings, I will continue to work for the development and welfare of women as well as the entire region by taking everyone along,” she told mediapersons.