'Achhe Din' have arrived in Odisha, says Amit Shah

Bhubaneswar, Aug 8 (IANS) The 'acche din' (good days) have arrived in Odisha with people from the state occupying top posts in the country like never before, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Monday.

He said this while addressing the 75th anniversary of an Odia daily newspaper in Cuttack.

Justifying his statement, he said Droupadi Murmu, born in a poor tribal family of the state, is now the "Mahamahim Rashtrapati".

"Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das and MoS Bishweswar Tudu are also from Odisha," he said.

"Odisha had never got such high representation since independence," Shah said.

Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Central government in association with the Odisha government is making all efforts for the development of the state, he said.

The Home Minister said there is immeasurable potential for development in Odisha as the state has long coastline, business tradition, work force and mineral resources.

Addressing the event, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said the role of media in a democratic society can hardly be overemphasised.

"It should endeavour to uphold our great cultural heritage and moral values and promote national integration and communal harmony. Media should discharge its duty without any fear or favour," Patnaik said.

"Media runs on the basis of people's trust. It is therefore expected that the media should prioritise the real issues of people rather than politics," he said.

"Whether it is print or electronic or social media, it is the duty of every media house to maintain dignity and keep the secular principles in mind," he added.