Bhubaneswar: “The depth of Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s life, virtues and ideals made him loved by all. He had political opponents but no one was his enemy. He was Ajatashatru,” Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said while attending the Good Governance Day celebrations on the occasion of the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Wednesday.
Majhi attended the programme organised by the Information and Public Relations Department at the local OUAT Prashikshi Seva Sadan.
The Chief Minister said that Vajpayee’s name will forever be engraved in the political history of India as a generous-hearted hero, a successful Prime Minister, an orator and a poet. Vajpayee led the country and gave it a new direction at the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century.
It was his successful leadership at defining moments of the country that proved that the 21st century will be India’s century. Describing Vajpayee as a good ruler, the Chief Minister said that the economic progress of the country had reached a new peak during his time.
Stating that the greatest need for development is infrastructure, the Chief Minister said that if we look at the history of India’s development, Vajpayee’s time was a new beginning of infrastructure development. “He gave a new impetus to development by connecting four major cities of India in the Golden Quadrilateral scheme. In the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, he improved rural infrastructure by laying concrete roads in the villages of the country.” The Chief Minister said that Vajpayee’s far-reaching ideas have brought about a massive change in the environment and rural economy of the village.
Narrating some stories about Vajpayee, the Chief Minister said that he was a great leader who never compromised his ideals.
The Chief Minister said that Atal Bihari Vajpayee was a leader whose personality attracted Opposition parties and ushered in a new type of politics in India. He had the art and skill of doing constructive work for the country by taking political parties that believed in different ideas.
Commenting on the 1999 Kargil victory, the Chief Minister said that it showed Vajpayee’s strong leadership. The Chief Minister said that while he showed strong leadership for the integrity of the country, he was not going to go the extra mile to establish peace.
Stating that the late Vajpayee had contributed a lot to Odisha, the Chief Minister said that when Odisha was devastated by the 1999 cyclone, Vajpayee came to Odisha and showed the light of hope to all Odias. Vajpayee said that there would be no shortage of funds for the development of Odisha. This assurance Vajpayee created hope in the people as he declared it a national calamity and provided an initial aid of Rs 300 crore.
