Odisha Panchayat Polls: Two Engineers Quit Well-Paying Jobs, Their Next Goal: Serve The Public

Sambalpur/Angul: Jayanta Pradhan (31) and Sujit Mahallick (27) are both engineers. The similarity doesn’t end there. Both have quit their jobs to contest in the upcoming panchayat elections in Odisha.

Pradhan quit his job as a senior engineer in Industrial Capital Equipment, where he was earning Rs 8.5 lakh annually, to contest in the polls.

He has filed his nomination for the post of panchayat samiti member of Jujumura in Sambalpur district, which earlier used to be a Maoist hotbed.

“As an engineer I had a field job and could hardly spend time in my village Dangapal under Jujumura gram panchayat. But I spent most of the last two years in my village after the COVID-19 pandemic began and experienced its problems first-hand. I have decided to do something for my village now,” he was quoted by a newspaper.

The other engineer who has filed his nomination as a BJD candidate is Mahallick from Pokatunga village in Angul district. He has filed his papers for sarpanch post for the panchayat comprising two villages, Poktunga and Rampur.

Mahallick, who worked in a private company, left his job to contest in the polls. He did his BTech from IGIT-Saranga. His most recent job, as an assistant engineer in Jharsuguda, was his third.

“Elected representatives make tall promises during elections, which they forget later. I have decided to leave my job and work for the upliftment of villagers,” he was quoted by a newspaper.