One of the leading Odia channels, which runs a popularpolitical satire show and dares to be irreverent even to chief minister NaveenPatnaik, ran an episode recently in which a block development officer (BDO)shares his plight with a school headmaster and seeks his advice on how to getaround Aparajita Sarangi, without even a hint of malice towards her.
The provocation? Sarangi, as commissioner-cum-secretary inthe panchayati raj department (since August 1, 2012), directed all BlockDevelopment Officers (who are under the administrative control of herdepartment) to stay put in their stations, make regular field visits, listen toand address public grievances. The instructions (issued on October 4) areunambiguous and stern. “Under no circumstances, any BDO should be found notstaying at block headquarters”; “No PD, DRDA/BDO will come to Bhubaneswarunless called by the panchayati raj department for a meeting here” and “any deviationfrom this instruction will be seriously viewed and action as deemed proper willbe initiated”.
In this department, she will, however, be better rememberedfor doing something extraordinary: Making palli sabha (village meeting) andgram sabha (meeting of all adult villagers in a panchayat consisting of one ormany villages) vibrant, participatory and meaningful. Until now, palli and gramsabha meetings were largely a farce. A handful of influential villagers andgovernment officials would meet and decide everything. She changed all that.She made palli sabha meetings as the forum to explain all the welfare schemesmeant for them and demand, plan projects and entitlements.
Sarangi became a household name between 2003 and 2006 whenshe gave a big boost to chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s ‘Mission Shakti’, whichaimed at holistic empowerment of women through the formation of self-helpgroups (SHGs) “ giving women confidence, economic support and training tocarryout trade-related activities. As director of the mission, she spread SHGsto all districts, formed SHG federations and provided credit-linking to themwith banks for financing various activities.
At BMC, she made Bhubaneswar more presentable and a modelfor many cities to follow “ largely clear of vendors from the streets, most ofpublic walls clean and painted and roadsides landscaped. Removing vendors fromthe streets brought cheers all around. They were given aesthetically pleasingstalls, all painted green, far away from the streets, with no cost to thegovernment. The vendors were given identity cards too. Spaces were marked outfor the pavement as well as shoppers, freeing the roads to carry vehicles.
Sarangi has done much more. She has brought in many smalland big changes in the departments she has worked for “ which have changed theway things are run and would need much more space to list. The sum andsubstance remain the same: to make a difference wherever she can. In her ownwords, she explains what drives her: “Basically, an intense desire to helppeople. I can’t say anything more. I have chosen this profession because itconnects me to people directly and gives me an opportunity to directly deliverthe services to them.”
*In association with Governance Now
