Odisha undergoing transformation while maintaining its eternal values: Patnaik

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday claimed that Odisha has been undergoing transformation in different sectors while maintaining its eternal values of peace, non-violence and social cohesion.

While speaking at the Odisha Literary Festival on the theme 'The ideas of identity', he said, "Our society is undergoing a transformation. Our education, healthcare, agriculture, everything is witnessing a paradigm shift." The CM claimed that Odisha's women now feel empowered, delivering strong leadership in the society.

"People of our state are more confident of their future now than they were ever before," Patnaik said.

"Peace, non-violence and social cohesion will remain our eternal values as the roots of our growing identity," he said.

Patnaik said Odisha has many identities and people of the state celebrate all of those.

"However, I believe, a society's identity is defined by its core values," he said.

Stating that historical Odisha was defined by the Kalinga war, Patnaik said the determination to fight to the end changed the course of history.

"It spread the message of peace and non-violence. That is what Odisha continues to stand for even today. The glorious era of emperor Kharavela reestablished our identity as a vibrant society," he pointed out.

He said that people of Odisha displayed immense courage for the formation of the state on the basis of linguistic identity.

He said there was a time when some didn't consider Odia as a language but now it is recognised as a classical language.

"The spirituality of Odisha is deeply embedded in the worship of Lord Jagannath. The Jagannath culture is a narrative of Odisha's values in respecting all religions and cultures. Odisha's social cohesion is among the strongest and we are proud of this great social wealth," the chief minister added.