First such action in 23 years of BJD rule by CM, had started such review ahead of the 2019 polls
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday dropped Higher Education Minister Rohit Pujari from his council of ministers on account of “poor performance”, the first such move by Patnaik in his 23 years at the helm of the state.
Sources in the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said Patnaik has written to Governor Ganeshi Lal and recommended Pujari’s removal as a minister. The Higher Education portfolio has been assigned to Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak as additional charge.
CMO sources said Patnaik’s move came after Pujari’s department ranked the lowest in an annual performance review of government departments. They said that ahead of completing the fourth year of his current term on May 29, Patnaik had sought a performance report from his ministers as he sought to review the progress on the promises his party, the BJD, had made ahead of the 2019 elections.
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The review is a trend the CM follows every year, the sources said. “It’s for the first time in the 23 years of BJD rule that Patnaik has dropped a minister for poor performance after reviewing the performance of various departments,” one official source said.
Pujari’s removal comes days after the National Institution Ranking Framework (NIRF)-2023 report was released on June 5. The NIRF’s list of the country’s top 100 colleges and universities included four higher education institutions from Odisha, although none of these is run by the state government.
Pujari, a two-time MLA from Rairakhol assembly segment in Sambalpur district, was inducted as a minister in June 2022. Commenting on his removal, he told reporters that he was not unhappy with the CM’s decision.
“I had always tried to give my best, but somehow my effort might not have been satisfactory to the Chief Minister. He might have had more expectations from me. I was inducted as a minister just a year ago. There is a long way to go and I will try to learn and excel in my career,” said Pujari.
Pujari, who has twice earlier served as government’s deputy chief whip, recently triggered a row by suggesting leaders aged above 60 years should not fight elections.
Meanwhile, hours after dropping Pujari, the Odisha government also removed the Secretary, Higher Education, Bishnupada Sethi and replaced him with Aravind Agrawal.
Sethi has been shifted to the general administration department as officer on special duty (OSD).
First published on: 09-06-2023 at 16:07 IST
